


Searching for a Feeling

by Curious_Archer



Category: Motherland: Fort Salem (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Depictions of Death, F/F, F/M, Original Character(s), Sassy Raelle, Sassy Scylla, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:55:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 32,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24249910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Curious_Archer/pseuds/Curious_Archer
Summary: For as long as she can remember, Scylla Ramshorn has always done what it takes to survive. When she met Raelle Collar, everything she once knew went right out the window and shattered into a million pieces on the ground. She would give up everything to keep Raelle safe. Because she loves Raelle Collar more than she ever thought possible. She would do anything for her, even though she know's Raelle no longer loves her back. As much as she knows she should forget her- make this torture easier on herself- she can't; she will always love Raelle Collar.Raelle Collar has always loved deeply and fiercely. She thinks she should have learned her lesson by now. Love only ends in pain and suffering. She knows that she should leave Scylla behind and move on. But there is something addictive about being loved just as deeply and fiercely as she herself loves. Because, despite all of her mistakes, she knows that Scylla loves her. She knows that she loves Scylla, and as much as she wishes she could change it. She can't.No matter what happens. No matter what anybody else thinks.Deeply, truly, fiercely.
Relationships: Raelle Collar/Scylla Ramshorn, Raylla - Relationship
Comments: 106
Kudos: 299





	1. Gallows Humor

**Author's Note:**

> DISCLAIMER: I don't own anything. I am using Eliot Laurence's creation. It is not mine. As such, this is a really big deal for me, I haven't felt inspired to write since my dad died. I'm posting this now because it's been one year to the day since we lost him. I always thought he would hate me when I came out, but he loved me unconditionally. He knew I was gay for twenty eight days before he died. He loved and supported me the entire time. This story is for him.  
> The title is from Searching for a Feeling by Thirdstory. I think it is the perfect Raylla song.  
> This story might start to contain some elements that I've used in my other stories as well. I don't know why but I love writing stuff like that. If you've looked at any of my other works you'll pick up on the trend. I'm really excited for this story! It will be canon divergent, so once I'm started, if something different happens in the show, I'm not changing it. Sorry. The first few chapters are pretty fast paced. Once I really get into the story, it'll slow down a bit.  
> Please enjoy. Comments fuel my creativity, I'm selfish like that.  
> FAIR WARNING: I wrote the first two chapters in Present Tense then went back and changed it to Past Tense. So there might be tense mistakes, but just for the first two chapters. Also, I don't edit my work, I just post it, or else it'd never get done, I'd have to keep changing things. Enjoy!

“You know,” Scylla said, her voice filling the cavernous dungeon, “this place looks like it could use a makeover Sarah. I could suggest an amazing interior decorator. It’s all a bit macabre if you ask me. And that’s saying something.”

General Alder stood in front of her. Her composure unwavering in the face of Scylla’s commentary. “Your transport will arrive tonight. This is your last chance to redeem yourself. If you don’t tell me what the Spree knows, you’re going to spend the rest of your life in a cell just like this one.”

“Sounds cozy,” Scylla responded. “If you don’t mind Sarah, I’d like to request a cell with a leak. Make this whole prisoner thing feel even more depressing.”

“You don’t make requests here, girl.” Alder’s composure remained unshaken. The Biddies hissed from behind her, the disrespect peaking their anger.

Scylla briefly cocked an eyebrow. “Spooky.” She smiled at Alder. “Hey, Sarah, can I get a little water?” Alder made no move to answer her request. “What, no love? I feel like I’ve been hung out to dry here.” She pressed her hand to the collar around her throat. “You know what it’s lik-” she gasped, “-oh wait. Sorry. That was your sister.”

The seed that hit her caused her to stiffen in pain. It felt as though every bone in her body was breaking. Shattering. Yet she refused to scream in front of this woman.

The seed stopped abruptly and Scylla panted for air. She didn’t even realize that she had held her breath.

“Damn, Sarah,” she panted. More hissing greeted her words. “You’re in a bad mood today. You know, not eating is known to make people a little cranky.” She offered Alder a sympathetic pout. “A burrito would do you wonders. Don’t you ever get hungry?”

“I have no use for hunger. My appetite is filled by-”

“Young children!” Scylla interrupted excitedly, bouncing in her chair. “I knew it.”

“Your insolence will be your end, you foolish child,” Alder seethed. Her anger rising in a quick heat.

“Hey.” Scylla raised her hands as much as she could in a mock gesture of surrender. “No offence intended. I mean, I get it. No hunger. No pooping. I’m only seeing positives from he-” Her body curled in on itself. The seed that emanated from the biddies causing her so much pain, she couldn’t scream, even if she wanted to.

When the seed stopped, a hand grasped Scylla’s chin roughly, and she was forced to meet Alder’s gaze. “I was going to have you hang for your crimes, but I think I’ll like it more if you were alive for what’s about to happen. Living with a tortured soul is more punishment than death.”

Scylla remained impassive. She wouldn’t allow this woman a victory.

Alder spit at Scylla’s feet and tossed her head to the side. She left the dungeon, the Biddies following close behind. Scylla watched the back of the last Biddy disappear, expecting the door to close, but Anacostia stepped through before it could.

Anacostia sat in front of Scylla. The brunette gave her a predatory smile as she placed the plate of food next to her feet. “Why?” Was the only word out of her mouth.

Scylla’s smile slipped away. “I know how this ends Sergeant. Might as well have some fun and go down swinging. I may be doomed to die, but I’m not going to let you destroy my spirit. I’m taking that with me thanks. When they hear about what happened to me, they’ll know I wasn’t broken when it happened. Why are you here Anacostia?”

“Food.” The word was flat, and Scylla can sense that there was more. So, she smiled again.

“Oh, good. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that. I really appreciate the bread and berries. Really. I do.” She raised one hand over her heart, the other palm facing forward, pledging to the other woman that her words were sincere. “But, if you don’t mind, I’d like to make a request for my last meal.”

“Be quiet, Ramshorn.”

“So that’s a no to the burnt steak?” She laughed to herself. Anacostia said nothing, she just stared at the younger woman. “Damn Quartermaine. Not a fan of gallows humor? You’ve gotta admit, that was kinda funny.”

“I want that to finish that talk you promised me,” Anacostia told her. Scylla’s smile turned sad.

“Alright, Sergeant Quartermaine. Let’s have that talk.”

* * *

Time had lost all meaning for Scylla. She no longer knew if it was night or day. Minutes seemed to stretch on for hours, while hours passed in the blink of an eye. She didn’t even know how long she’d been talking to Anacostia this time. In a contrast to their last talk, this talk was more subdued. She had been trying to open Anacostia’s eyes to the truth of their world. She knew she was going to die. But, if she could sway someone as strong willed as Anacostia even a little bit, she had to try.

“I’m not saying that the Spree is good. We’ve done some truly horrid things,” Scylla told the other woman. “All I’m saying is that, in a war like this one, there is no right answer. Pain and hurt is unavoidable. I regret what I’ve done, but I will never regret _why_ I did it. You think I have blood on my hands? Your precious general has the blood of all the witches who have ever died in battle on her hands. That’s millions of women who died fighting a war that wasn’t theirs. We have no choice; we have to serve. Serve or die. If that’s not slavery, I don’t know what is.”

“We may not have made the choice,” Anacostia said, “but we make a difference. We do good.”

“We do what we do, so that the people of the United States can live the American dream in peace.” Scylla scoffed. “We _die_ for their freedom to choose and yet, we don’t get a choice? How is that right?”

“It’s not right,” Anacostia told her. “But that’s how it is. How it’s been for centuries.”

“So we should be resigned to slavery because it’s tradition?” Scylla asked the anger in her voice growing once again. “We should be okay with dying because, that’s the way it’s been done for generations? Tell me, why is it, three hundred years’ worth of pawns have died in this woman’s game, and yet the queen herself still stands as though a day hasn’t gone by. Why is it our duty to die for the cause but it’s not hers. We have to die with honor while she gets to life in peace with honor that she didn’t earn.”

Anacostia stared at her as she processed her words. She understood where the girl was coming from. Scylla had told her what happened to her family. She _understood_ now. And her heart went out to the young witch. She understood her pain. She had lost her family too. And just like that her decision was made.

“What are you doing?” Scylla asked as Anacostia started undoing her shackles.

Anacostia barely spared her a glance. “I have no idea what I’m doing. You need to go n-”

Scylla reached out and grasped her wrist. Images of Raelle, Tally, and Abigail flashed through her mind.

_“Alder puppeted the President,” Anacostia told them._

_“Isn’t that outlawed by the Hague?” Abigail asked, stepping closer to the Sergeant._

_“Very,” Anacostia responded. “And with good reason. I’ve known Alder since I was a kid. I’ve seen her make hundreds of tough calls, But never like this. Never with such disregard for the cost of her actions. She’s…. Whatever you set I motion with Petra left her no alternative.”_

_All of the girls shifted uneasily._

_“Can she follow this back to us?” Tally asked._

_“If she does… you’re all in grave danger.”_

Scylla was surprised when Anacostia didn’t try to force her out. Scylla could feel how Anacostia wanted her to see this.

_“It’s the Camarilla,” Isadora told Anacostia, taking a sip of her coffee. “I don’t know why she’s so insistent that it’s the Spree who are after the Tarim. I’m telling you Ana, it’s the Camarilla.”_

_“And you’re sure?” Anacostia asked._

_“I’m positive.”_

She watched as Raelle graduated from basic. And then another scene was unfolding in front of her eyes. She watched as Alder addressed her soldiers.

_“We will deploy at twenty-one-hundred. ETA in Krasnoyarsk is ten-hundred. I plan on taking the Bellweather Unit.”_

_Anacostia forced herself to nod._ She knows _._

_“Ma’am,” Isadora started, “don’t you think this is a little too dangerous for a unit that hasn’t been through war college yet?”_

_“Are you questioning my authority, Isadore?” Alder’s voice sent chills down Anacostia’s spine._

_“No ma’am.”_

Scylla retracted her hand as though she’d been burned. They stared at each other, waiting to see who would make the first move.

“Make it look good,” Anacostia said. That’s all that Scylla needed.

They both leapt into action at the same time. Scylla dove for the plate of food that was on the ground and threw it at Anacostia. It hit her in the chest but it did little to dissuade her. Anacostia continued her advance on Scylla, who released a powerful wind strike that sent Anacostia flying backwards. Scylla struggled to her feet, making sure to put on a show.

Anacostia staggered to her feet and sent a wind strike back towards Scylla. She grabbed the chair that was bolted to the floor to brace herself. The wind strike stopped in time for Anacostia to punch her opposition. Scylla stumbled into the other chair, grasping it tightly. She could hear Anacostia approach from behind. She turned to face her, swinging the chair with as much might as she could muster. Anacostia fell to the ground and Scylla tossed the chair to the ground. She walked over to Anacostia who stared up at her, frozen.

“We’re going to succeed. Nothing can stop us.” Scylla kicked Anacostia in the head, knocking her out immediately.

She sung her seed and she could feel her features change. She looked down and watched as her clothes changed. It’d never get old. She spared Anacostia one last glance and left the dungeon behind. The sound of the door clanging closed echoed behind her.

* * *

She headed straight to Circe. She knew that Alder was long gone. She knew that Raelle was with her. She just needed a way to get out undetected. And if what her guards had been talking about held any truth, then she needed to find someone first.

She nodded to the cadets as she passed them in the hall. They were celebrating their graduation. Scylla watched as they slammed back their drinks. If only they knew what it all really meant. This was going to be easier than she thought it would be. She spun in a small circle and finally spotted who she was looking for. There they were, sitting in the common area whispering fiercely to each other. Their guard stood a few yards away, clearly trying to eavesdrop. She straightened and tried to exude as much authority as possible as she entered the room.

“Corporal Greenswick,” Scylla said, she waited until she’d been saluted to continue. “General Alder gave me orders concerning our guests. I’ll be taking them off of your hands for tonight.”

“Sergeant,” Greenswick started, “may I ask what you need our guests for?”

“That is classified Corporal,” Scylla barked. “Dismissed.”

Greenswick offered a small nod and left Scylla and her targets behind. She turned to find the two of them staring at her.

“You are not Anacostia Quartermaine,” the girl said.

“Nice one,” Scylla responded sharply. “Say it a little louder, I’m not sure Boston heard you.”

“Don’t talk to her like that.” The boy advanced towards Scylla but the girl raised her hand and he froze in place.

“Misplaced aggression,” she told him. She looked back to Scylla. “You were wondering why we were still here Adil. The answer is right in front of you.”

Adil remained silent.

“Yes, sounds great,” Scylla said. She gestured for them to pass her. “But we need to go now.”

The girl did as she was told, but Adil remained steadfast. “We are not going anywhere with you. For all we know, this is a trap Khalida.”

“It is not a trap,” Khalida said. “We can trust her.”

Adil followed Khalida, reluctantly allowing Scylla to bring up the rear. They exited Circe Hall and followed Khalida away from the building. It took a second before Scylla realized where they were going. “That’s not the way,” Scylla called, this wasn’t a part of her plan.

“Yes, it is,” Khalida called back to her.

“I like her,” she told Adil, sarcasm painting her words. “She’s a real hoot.”

Adil didn’t respond as they continued to trudge down the path. As they walked, the sound of engines reached Scylla’s ears. The airstrip was on the other side of the compound, why would an airplane be out here? The closer that they got, the sound of the engines cutting through the air drowned out all other noise. As they entered the clearing, Scylla straightened herself once more. Authority was not her strong suit, she had no idea how to act, she could only hope that if she exuded enough confidence they wouldn’t think twice about how she was acting.

Just to the side of the wing of the plane, three women stood and watched the small group approach them.

“Sergeant Quartermaine, we’re here to transport the prisoner. It’s a standard touch and go, once the prisoner has boarded we’ll take off immediately.” One of the women stepped forward, yelling loudly in order to be heard over the engines of the plane.

“There’s been a change of plans,” Scylla shouted back. “General Alder has requested that we return these kids to their people immediately. The operation is classified. As such you will need to take your pilot with you, no one can know where we’re going. The prisoner can wait until we get back. Is that understood?”

“Yes ma’am,” the woman shouted. “I just need the verification code.”

“Foxtrot, Charlie, six, echo, whiskey, six, two, kilo,” Scylla yells.

“Verification accepted,” the woman yelled, she turned to signal the pilot. The woman nodded and cut the engines before exiting the plane. They all waited in silence for the pilot to reach them. The first woman reached out to shake Scylla’s hand. “It was great to meet you Sergeant.”

“You ladies enjoy your days off, you hear me?” she called.

“Yes ma’am,” the four women shouted. The women turned and walked into the forest without looking back once.

Scylla nodded towards the plane. Adil and Khalida followed her orders and marched up the ramp of the plane. Scylla checked to make sure that the coast was clear before she followed them onto the plane.

“Are you going to tell us what’s going on?” Adil asked as Scylla threw herself behind the controls. She stared at the switches in front of her.

“Ask your sister,” she said, reaching up to flip a switch. She flipped it back when nothing happened. “She seems to know exactly what’s going on.”

“I didn’t ask her,” he said as he followed her into the cockpit. “I asked you.”

“People need our help, your people need our help, and I thought having an invisible man on my side would be helpful.” Scylla flipped another switch and jumped when the engines of the plane started to rotate.

“Do you know how to fly a plane?” Adil asked.

“Yes.” Scylla flicked a few more switches, hoping that they were the ones she wanted. The ramp started to close behind her.

Adil looked at her suspiciously. “Have you ever _flown_ a plane before?”

“Nope.” Scylla started to push the plane forward. As it started to slide along the runway she looked over her shoulder at the young man.

“Relax brother,” Khalida said. They both turned to look at her briefly and found her strapped into a seat. “If anything,” she said, “this is the safest part of her plan.”

“I don’t like you,” Scylla told her, offended. Normally, she would try to be nice and win them over. Con her way into their ranks. But she had been locked up for weeks being tortured. At this point she was beyond caring. Either they’ll help or they won’t. She just didn’t care anymore.

“I don’t care,” Khalida responded with some sass. And for the first time since they met, she looked like an actual child. All because she wanted mock Scylla. Lovely.

Scylla faced forward once again and started to raise the plane off of the ground. She couldn’t help but chuckle as Adil stumbled backwards and was forced to strap himself into his seat.

“Brace yourselves,” Scylla told them. “It’s a long flight from here to Krasnoyarsk.”

“You’re taking us back to Krasnoyarsk?” Adil asked. “Why?”

“General Alder has a plan for your people, and she’s going to get the units with her killed to do it.” Scylla watched their altitude climb as they talked.

“But, Abigail and her unit are on that mission,” Adil had to yell to be heard over the turbulence of the plane. Scylla struggled to keep control of the plane. Knowing that she just had to push the machine higher and it’d be fine.

“Yes, I am aware.” The turbulence stopped and she entered the coordinates she remembered seeing in Anacostia’s memories and adjusted their course when she thought they were high enough.

“Why are we here?” Adil asked. Scylla rolled her eyes. _This guy_.

“Having an invisible boy to sneak me through enemy territory is a real big advantage. They will see Alder coming. So they’ll set up traps and attacks to slow her down. They won’t be able to see us so we can get ahead of her and cut her off,” Scylla called back to him. She kept her eyes focused in front of her. “That is, if we get there in time.”

“Our people are peaceful, they wouldn’t attack anyone,” Adil yelled.

“It’s not your people I’m worried about,” Scylla told him. “It’s the Camarilla. They’re after your people, and Alder is going to use this for her own gain somehow, I just don’t know how.”

“She wants our songs,” Khalida spoke for the first time since they took off. “She wants our songs so that she may gain the power that has been denied to her for centuries.”

“Shocker,” Scylla said dryly. “A power hungry bitch wants to take over the world. Whoever could have seen this coming?” Scylla’s voice was monotone as she talked, her words dripping with sarcasm.

Khalida released a loud and bizarre laugh, causing Scylla to jump and the plane to jolt. Scylla turned to look at her, feeling slightly disturbed. She was glad to see that Adil was looking at his sister in the exact same way.

They sat in silence hours, the need to talk had disappeared completely. They knew what they needed to do. They were all content to sit in silence with their thoughts.

While they were flying over some European country Scylla couldn’t pronounce. She set the auto pilot and exited the cockpit, needing to stretch her legs and pop her back.

“Are you alright Sergeant?” Adil asked her as she passed him.

“What?” Scylla asked. Sergeant? “Oh! Right. Almost forgot.” She gave Adil her most charming smile. “If you’ll just excuse me for a second.”

She walked to the back of the plane and started rooting through the emergency case. She rose to her feet once she’d found what she was looking for. She lit the match in her hand and raised it to her face. That familiar feeling washed over her once again. She much preferred this way to the seed. The seed tended to drain her energy much faster than the fire version of the spell did. She felt so much better in her own skin. She gave herself a little shake once the fire was out and turned to face the others.

“Whew!” she exclaimed. “Note-to-self: don’t keep a face on for that long, it’s stifling.”

“Who are you?” Adil asked. His suspicion had returned tenfold. His sister watched on, seemingly unfazed.

“Scylla.” She held out her hand to him. “Ramshorn.”

He declined to shake her hand, recoiling away from her. “Scylla? You’re supposed to be in jail. Abigail said you were arrested because you’re Spree.”

“Yes, it’s true,” Scylla said. “I’m an awful person but look on the bright side. I’m the only person who can fly this plane, so you can’t do anything about it.”

“You are a murderer,” Adil spat at her.

“Yes. I am,” Scylla replied, completely relaxed in the face of his anger. “So I guess that bright side is just for me then huh?”

“And me,” Khalida responded. Scylla gave her another look. This kid was weird. And coming from her, that was saying something.

“Look,” Scylla said. She looked back at Adil. “We all have things that are worth fighting for. The difference is that we all have different ways of fighting. Yours is pacifism, you’re willing to let all of your people die for the sake of the world. I’m willing to let a few civilians die for the sake of my people.”

“You killed thousands of innocent people.”

“So I’m willing to let more than a few civilians die,” Scylla rolled her eyes as she started rifling through the supplies stocked on the plane. “I’m not proud of it. It makes me sick to my stomach that I stooped so low. But at the time, I thought there was no other way.”

“And now?” Adil asked, his brows furrowed.

“Now I know better,” she responded vaguely, focusing on her task at hand she stopped her search and turned to face Khalida. “Hey, Khalida, you know everything. Is there a spare uniform on board?”

“Yes,” was all that she said. Scylla waited for her to say something else but nothing happened.

“Okay,” she said. “Where?”

Khalida pointed to a spot near the cockpit, and Scylla saw a small rucksack tucked into a small alcove.

“Thank you.” She roughly opened the rucksack and pulled out the fresh clothes. When she rose, Khalida was already looking away respectively, but Adil was watching her curiously. “Feel free to watch Adil, just be prepared, I expect compensation for the show.”

Adil’s eyes snapped closed, and he turned his face away for good measure. Scylla chuckled and shook her head as she pulled her tank top over her head.

“If you’re not Sergeant Quartermaine, then how did you get the verification code?” Adil asked, facing the back of the plane.

“I was a spy for the Spree, Adil. I know a lot of things I probably shouldn’t,” Scylla told him. She turned her head and found that Khalida was watching her once again.

“There is something you are hiding from me,” Khalida said. “What is it?”

“It’s a secret. That’s why I’m hiding it.” Scylla frowned at the girl. “Stay out of my head.”

“I can’t,” Khalida said as Scylla pulled on her fresh jacket. “It is not something I can control.”

“Well learn,” Scylla told her. “Nobody likes it when people are nosy. People like their privacy.”

“Why are you hiding it?” Khalida asked. Scylla shook her head as she buttoned her pants and bent down to tie her shoes.

“It’s important.” Scylla stood and started looking for a scourge. “If my plan works you’ll find out. Until then back off.”

“I apologize if I have offended you.”

“You didn’t,” Scylla said, moving to stand in front of Khalida.

“I would advise against what you’re abou-” the young girl started. But Scylla pressed her hand to the girls head, causing her to fall asleep instantly.

“Sorry, what was that?” Scylla cupped her hand to her ear, bending down as though to hear Khalida better. “You got cut off.”

“What did you do?” Adil cried, struggling to undo his harness. He finally managed to unclasp it, but before he can stand, Scylla had placed a hand on his head and he was out like a light.

“Finally,” she said, moving to sit in the cockpit. “A little bit of peace and quiet.”

* * *

“I think we should take a break,” Adil said as they followed Khalida through the forest. Neither of them questioned the girl. Scylla assumed she must know where they were going, she seemed to know everything else. “We’ve been walking for hours, Khalida needs rest.”

They had landed the plane on a farm in the closest town that they could find. An hour before they landed Scylla had realized they were heading towards an army base, so she had to adjust their course. All they had to go off of was Adil’s best guess. It had set them back by hours. They had settled in a rundown shack in the middle of the forest for the night. Adil and Khalida had taken the opportunity to get some sleep. Scylla couldn’t relax enough to doze no matter how hard she tried. They were on the move again the second the sun came up. They hadn’t stopped since.

“Khalida,” Scylla started, glancing toward the girl, “do you need a break?”

“No,” Khalida responded as she stepped over a fallen tree.

“Sorry Adil,” Scylla said. “We keep going until we find them. They had a head start and we can’t afford to be late.”

“She’s just a child,” he attempted.

“Not today she’s not.” Scylla pushed a branch out of her path.

“You don’t even know her,” he growled.

“No,” Scylla agreed. “I don’t. But she’s clearly old and wise enough to make her own decisions, so stop playing big brother and let her decide.”

“What would you know about-” Adil began, but Scylla stopped and faced him. Her glare cutting his words short.

“Quite a lot actually.” Scylla said calmly. “Now, shut up. We’ve got a job to do.”

The air around them shifted. Ten yards in front of them Khalida froze, “We are too late.”

“The hell we are.” Scylla took off running.

The three of them tore through the forest. They showed no regard for the foliage that was in their way. The grounded obstacles of rocks and trees did little to slow them down. Scylla couldn’t remember a time she has ever run this fast. The trees started to fly past her less frequently as the forest thinned out.

Scylla’s lungs burned as she slid to a stop on the edge of a cliff. Scylla and Khalida grabbed onto Adil, and the world around them shifted as he made them invisible. To their left, they could see women burning at the stake. And below them, they could see a line of men and women facing off against a line of soldiers as wind started to kick up dust in the small canyon before them.

Khalida pointed to something on the other side of the cliff and Adil’s breath hitched with excitement. “It’s our people.”

Scylla followed their line of sight and saw a small group of people standing in the entrance of a cave that’s been carved out of the bottom of the opposite cliff face. The wind increased around them, making harder to see what was in front of them.

“We have to get to my people,” Adil called over the wind. He looked panicked; the images Scylla had described of what the Camarilla do to witches flashed through his head. He couldn’t allow that to happen to them.

“If we help them, you help me do you understand?” Scylla yelled to him. The young man nodded in understanding, though he didn’t look happy about it.

“Yes!” he called as they heard a battle cry soar through the air. Below them the two groups charged at one another.

“Then let’s go.” She reached into her side pouch and withdrew the Salva. She pulled out a star for herself and Adil and ripped one in half for Khalida. She knew better than to give a small child a full dose of drugs intended for adults.

They placed the Salva on their necks at the same time and jumped off of the edge, still holding onto Adil. They descended quickly, pulling up and stopping right before they slammed into the ground. Adil staggered on his feet, dragging Scylla and Khalida with him. They all froze for a second, worried that his spell may have wavered. When it’s clear that no one saw them, they started running.

Once again, they were racing across uneven terrain. Adil seemed to be dragging the two girls behind him as his long strides carried him ahead of the pack. The dust that swirled around them stung her eyes as they ran. She could hear the sounds of battle as they got closer to the cave. She prayed to whoever was listening that Raelle would be okay. They swerved in and out of women, trying their best to avoid collision. The closer they got, the harder going undetected became. The witches were protecting the cave and the people just inside of it.

She was thankful for the invisibility because she knows she bumped into at least two people on their way through the battlefield. They stumbled their way through, skidding to halts to avoid the swings of various scourges, ducking under wind shears that had gone astray. It was a miracle they hadn’t died yet. When they got to the cave they slipped inside behind the group of people. They wanted to remain unseen by the forces outside. Adil ceased his seed and they were visible again.

“Hello,” Khalida said.

They people in front of them all jumped. They spun to see who had addressed them, ready to attack if they had to. Scylla tensed and she could feel a seed building in her throat. She was ready to attack, when the group in front of her all visibly relaxed at the sight of Khalida and Adil.

They rushed forward to embrace the two. The large group hug lasted an uncomfortable amount of time for Scylla. She waited for them all to stop, but they wouldn’t. When they got close to a minute, Scylla cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, but we don’t have much time. We need to get moving.”

Adil pulled away from his people, nodding. “Are you all that’s left?”

An old man stepped forward, eyeing Scylla suspiciously. “Yes, we lost everyone else in the attack.”

Adil nodded.

“What are we going to do?” A woman stepped forward holding the hand of a young girl she dragged with her.

Adil turned to look at Scylla, deferring the authority to her.

“How many of you have mastered the Seed of Invisibility?” She asked. Six people including the old man and the woman raised their hands. “Alright,” she said, nodding her head. “Each of you are going to take a dose of Salva. Wait to use it until you’re outside. Make sure you’re invisible before you step outside. Use the Salva to get to the top of the cliff then go hide in the woods. Khalida will tell you when it’s time to go. Don’t try to play hero. Stay hidden and stay safe.”

The people in front of her nodded. Too nervous to say anything at all. “I know you all are scared,” Khalida said. “But we need to trust in Scylla. This is how we save our people.”

Adil looked at his sister for the umpteenth time that day, wondering what it was that she knew. Because what _he_ knew was that Scylla couldn’t be trusted. But if his sister said that they could trust her then they could trust her. Loathe though he was to do so.

The brunette witch was already handing out the Salva. She was telling the people how to use it. She looked them each in the eye and made sure that they confirmed their understanding. She took an extra few seconds with the small girl who clung to her mother’s hand. Once she was finished they all split into groups and waited for their turn.

Group by group the quietly filed out of the cave. Scylla- holding Adil’s hand so as to remain invisible- scanned the area around them before she told each group when they were clear to go. The battle continued to wage in front of them. As the last group took off, they heard a primal scream and they turned to see Alder calling a storm like they’d never seen before.

“Shit,” Scylla breathed.


	2. Run

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Bellweather unit gets a shock.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Please enjoy! Comment and let me know what you think! It feeds my soul! I don't edit, so sorry for typos!

Raelle had known the second she stepped on that plane that it was going to be a shit-show. They had graduated at the top of their class, and yet they had still become war meat. She knew that Alder found out about what they did. There was no other explanation for the top unit in Basic being passed over for war college. This was Alder’s revenge. They were going to die out here.

Bodies of fellow soldiers fell around her. Somehow, this was worse than she thought it would be. When she had originally planned on becoming war meat, she didn’t think it would be as bad as it was. She didn’t know how their unit had lasted so long. More experienced women who had gone to war college and were able to take down three of their attackers at a time were dropping like flies. It didn’t make sense that they were still standing.

She swung her scourge with all of the fury that she could muster. It wrapped around the neck of a Camarilla soldier and she yanked it as hard as she could. The sound of his neck snapping carried quietly to her ears as the man fell to the ground. She heard a cry from behind her. She turned to find a man running toward her with his knife poised to strike. She released a wind strike sending the man flying away from her.

The dust in the air around them seemed to get thicker. She could barely see five feet in front of her and she’d lost track of Abigail and Tally. She could hear them fighting somewhere nearby, but she couldn’t see them.

“Tally,” she called. She spun in a circle, making sure that no one was attacking her. The wind became stronger. “Abigail!”

She could feel the debris in the wind nicking her exposed skin. Her goggles were the only protection she had on her face. Blood slowly trickled its way down her cheeks and dripped off her chin and jaw. The cuts stung as dirt forced its way into them.

“Tally,” she called again. “Abigail!”

A man appeared in front of her. She was barely able to block his assault. She was so focused on his knife that she missed his fist. It smashed into her jaw and she staggered away from him because of the force of his hit. With more distance between them she swung her scourge and wrapped it around his ankle. She pulled, knocking him onto his back. She spun and swung again. He rolled out of the way of the strike and a small divot appeared in the ground where her scourge hit.

He pushed to his feet and swung his knife again. Raelle grabbed the hand that held the knife and pushed it to the side. She stepped forward and head butted the man. When he staggered away she swung her scourge with deadly force and accuracy. Another body dropped to the ground.

“Raelle.” She heard Abigail’s voice over the den. “Tally.”

She was about to call back when everything quiets. The dust in the air around her fell rapidly back to the ground. She turned on the spot and saw that only a few of the Camarilla were left. Abigail stood twenty feet away from her and Tally was ten feet behind Abigail. They all had blood running down their cheeks. Raelle’s jaw was swollen and her lip was busted. Abigail’s nose was broken and Tally had a cut above her eyebrow. Other than that they all looked somewhat okay.

Exhausted, but okay.

They ran to each other and embraced. The other women around them were dealing with the last of the Camarilla so they let their guard down. They were safe, they had done it.

The air around them shifted and they pulled apart. The clouds above them were starting to shift again. They looked for the cause and found Alder standing near an empty cave, raising her hands to the sky as she sung her seed. The clouds formed small funnels that reached down and started ripping the Camarilla from the ground, throwing them hundreds of feet into the air. They fell back to earth with a sickening crunch. One by one each of the Camarilla soldiers met their end.

But Alder kept going. Next, their fellow soldiers were being thrown through the air. They watched in horror as their comrades were thrown to their deaths. Alder turned towards them and Raelle prepared herself for the end. This was it. This was how she was going to die. She stood tall and stared at Alder, hoping all of her hatred for this corrupt woman was shining through.

Her eyes were pulled away from Alder to the blur of someone running from the cave. Alder was so focused on them that she hadn’t noticed her approaching enemy. Next to Raelle, Abigail and Tally were looking up at the sky. Both sung their own seeds to ward of the funnels that Alder was forcing upon them. Raelle’s eyes followed as the blur got closer, the person was moving too fast and was too far away for Raelle to identify if they were friend of foe.

If they’re going for Alder, at this point, it didn’t really matter to Raelle.

The person crashed into Alder. The storm stopped the second that she hit the ground. Abigail and Tally’s heads snapped forward to see what has happened.

“What the hell?” Abigail asked. She moved to step closer but, Tally’s hand on her wrist stopped her.

“Oh my goddess,” Tally breathed. Both of her teammates turned to look at her. The fight in front of them faded to the background.

“What?” they asked her. They both recognized the look on her face as the one she got when she was Seeing something.

“What do you see Tally?”

They turned in time to see the newcomer thrown against the wall of the cliff. The figure crumpled to the ground. Tally gasped. Alder approached and loomed over her prey. She stumbled backward as the person struck out at her.

“But it can’t be,” Tally said. Raelle could see that all color had drained from her face, and she looked horrorstruck. “She’s supposed to be in jail. She shouldn’t be here; it can’t be her.”

“Tally.” Abigail shook the girl’s shoulder. “Who is it Tally?”

Raelle felt sick. “Scylla,” she and Tally said at the same time.

Raelle took off running. Her unit moved to follow her but she ran into an invisible barrier. She stumbled back wondering what it could have been.

The air before them shimmered. Then in front of them stood Adil.

“Adil?” Abigail asked, stepping forward to grab his hand. “What are you doing here?”

“We came to rescue you,” he told them. His words were rushed, and he glanced over his shoulder in time to see Alder throw a wind strike at Scylla, the latter of the two blocking the brunt of the strike but still getting pushed backwards. She whipped her scourge out at Alder who was forced to dodge, causing her to drop her seed. Alder swung her scourge at Scylla who barely ducked the blow.

“Quick,” Adil drew their attention back to him. “We must go now. Please. Scylla is buying us time.”

“We have to help her.” Raelle tried to force her way around the boy in front of her. She was stopped by two pairs of arms around her waist, pulling her backwards. “No, stop!” she cried. “She doesn’t stand a chance. We have to help her.”

“Raelle.” Adil was in front of her again. “She is providing the distraction we need to get away. We must go, now. This is all a part of her plan.”

“I don’t care,” she growled as she continued to struggle. A flailing hand hit Abigail and Raelle felt a brief twinge of guilt. But it was not enough to stop her.

“Raelle,” Tally said. “Calm down.”

This time it was Alder who was thrown into the cliff face. However, she fared better than Scylla did, for she landed on her feet and released a seed that caused Scylla to scream in pain. She stumbled away from Alder, but the seed continued unrelentingly. She released a seed of her own and Alder started to grasp at her throat. She swung her scourge, catching a slightly dazed Scylla across the cheek.

Raelle screamed and struggled even harder.

“Please Raelle,” Abigail plead with her friend. “The faster we get safe; the faster Scylla can run too.”

It took a few seconds for her words to sink in before Raelle relented with a nod. Her three companions sighed in relief. Adil held out his hands and the girls each grabbed one; Tally and Raelle doubling up. He started to sing his seed and the world around them rippled. “Come,” he said. “We must run.”

They followed him towards the cave. They rapidly approached the cave and consequently, Alder and Scylla. Raelle didn’t watch where she was going as she ran, her eyes focused completely on the fighting duo. Scylla’s face was bloody and she’s panting heavily. Alder herself seemed to be a little worse for wear. But she mainly just looked annoyed; she was ready to finish this, but Scylla was proving to be a more difficult opponent than Alder had expected.

Raelle stumbled many times, her feet catching on the uneven ground of the small canyon floor. Each time, Tally yanked her back to her feet before she could face plant. They slowed as they approached the cave entrance. Scylla and Alder had dropped their seeds and were fighting strictly with their scourges. They were moving too fast for Raelle’s eyes to follow. She had no idea that Scylla could fight like this. She thought that Necros were trained differently than the rest of the recruits.

Raelle and her group stopped a few feet away from the opening, all of them were panting heavily.

Raelle’s eyes followed the fight next to them. She had to physically restrain herself from yelling as Scylla jumped out of the path of Alders scourge.

Khalida appeared in front of them. She didn’t say a word, she just offered them the Salva in her hand. All four of them placed the small stars to their necks. They immediately began to rise. They travelled through the air slowly. All they could do as they rose was watch the fight before them. Alder’s scourge whipped out, slamming into Scylla’s chest, sending her crashing to the ground.

“You were foolish to think that you could beat me child,” Alder yelled at Scylla who was pushing herself to her feet. Scylla scoffed as she spat blood onto the ground.

“You’re the one who is dragging this out, Sarah,” Scylla called to her. She straightened and prepared to continue their fight. “You’re the General of the United States Army, I should be dead ten times over by now. What’s the problem? No Biddies; no power? Is that how it works. You’re getting old again, so now you’re no match for a child?”

They reached the top of the cliff and Raelle tried to drop Adil’s hand but he held fast. “What are you doing?” she asked him. “You need to go get Scylla.”

“That’s not the plan,” he told her. They all continued to watch the battle below them. “We must go.”

“No,” Khalida said. “We must stay. She hasn’t told me yet.”

None of them questioned her.

Alder screamed in rage and Scylla went flying backwards again. This time, she crashed back down to the ground in a heap. Yet she pushed to her feet once again. A seed rose from her throat and Alder didn’t move. Raelle had no idea what Scylla was doing to the General, but it seemed as though she couldn’t move an inch.

“Do you like this little seed I cooked up?” Scylla asked. She approached slowly, still Alder didn’t move. “I have a few minutes before you can move again, so I wouldn’t worry. I want to hear you villainous monologue. So, what was the plan Sarah? Lead the Bellweather unit on a suicide mission because they sold you out? Get them killed call it a tragic loss? Catch the Tarim in the process? But you were winning the battle, and they survived. So, what were you going to do next?”

Alder’s voice echoed its way up to the group of people perched atop the cliff.

“Nothing,” Alder said.

“Come now, tell the truth.” Scylla sung a different seed. Alder’s throat strained as she tried to resist the magic of Scylla’s seed.

“Kill. Them. Say they. Lost. Con-trol. Killed. Every. One. Else. Had. No. Choice. Plant-ed. Spree.” Alder’s response was stuttered and forced, as the words struggled to get out; Alder was trying and failing to keep them contained

“Atta girl,” Scylla cheered. She turned and started yelling as though she were addressing a stadium full of people. “Ladies and gentlemen! You’ve heard it here first folks. Sarah Alder is a corrupt, power hungry bitch with no value for human life.” She turned back to Alder, “That wasn’t so bad was it?”

Alder moved again; her scourge darted out quickly. It slammed into Scylla’s side and sent her sprawling across the dirt. She laid there as Alder walked towards her, her steps were halted and staggered, the effects of Scylla’s seed not having worn off completely.

They could hear helicopters in the distance.

“You hear that? My backup is on the way. You’re out of time Ramshorn. Tell me. What did you hope to gain from this? You know you don’t stand a chance. Even in my weakened state, I have centuries of experience. Centuries of fighting and killing. You have nothing. You’ll die here and no one will care. So what was the point?” She bent over her and the seed she released caused Scylla to scream. Her voice was raw and strained. She writhed on the ground, trying to fight the pain that had filled her body.

It took the strength of everyone with her to hold Raelle back. She struggled desperately to break away. She had to get to Scylla. It couldn’t happen like this. Alder stopped her seed and Raelle expected to see Alder go for the kill. But everyone was shocked by the sound that reverberated off the canyon walls. Even Alder halted, though this time, not by force. She was halted by surprise.

Scylla was laughing.

Scylla was about to be killed by Alder, and she was laughing.

Raelle froze, unsure of what was happening. It was good, because if she had still been struggling, she would have been able to break away; for her companions were also frozen in shock.

Scylla’s laughter continued.

“What is this?” Alder asked. “What are you doing?”

“Oh, Sarah, Sarah, Sarah,” Scylla said, smiling up at Alder. “In all of your centuries of life, you’d think you’d know by now.”

“What?”

“There is nothing more dangerous than a person with nothing to lose.” There was a pause as realization spread across Alder’s face. Scylla screamed and Alder went flying backwards once again. This time, however, she didn’t land on her feet.

“We need to go,” Adil plead, trying to pull everyone along with him. None of them budged.

“We can’t,” Khalida said her eyes fixed on the brunette below them. “She hasn’t told me.”

“Hasn’t told you what?” Tally asked. They all watch as Scylla approached Alder. This time she was the one stalking her prey.

“Her secret,” Khalida responded.

“I hate to break it to you sweetheart,” Abigail said, “but she’s got a lot of those.”

“No.” Khalida shook her head. “This is the final secret. She needs to tell me. It’s the last part of the plan.”

They could see a helicopter appear over the trees in the distance on the other side of the small canyon.

“You see,” Scylla yelled to Alder. “From the day we’re born, a part of us is dying. And you, my dear General, have been dying for centuries. Without your Biddies, your power is gone, you’re nothing but a frail old lady now.”

Alder rose to her feet. She stood, ready for the oncoming attack. Raelle could see what Scylla was talking about. Slowly, Alder’s form had started to hunch and her skin was starting to wrinkle. She tried to wind strike Scylla, but it lacked any power.

Raelle saw the glint of something in Scylla’s hand. She had grabbed a fallen Camarilla knife. Alder seemed to see the same thing that Raelle did for she snarled at the other girl and launched herself forward trying to take Scylla by surprise. Scylla easily dodged her desperate attack.

“You’re going to die here, Sarah Alder,” Scylla called. “You should have thought about this before you led your Biddies on a suicide mission. You’ve lost your life force. What are you going to do now?”

“I’ll just have to take yours,” Alder launched herself at Scylla once more. She was in the air, halfway to Scylla, when the girl started to sing again.

They all watched as Alder screamed in horror. Scylla sidestepped her again and she fell to the ground. Scylla’s seed worked its way through Alder’s body. As the helicopter cleared the trees, Alder seemed to disintegrate before their very eyes. Her skin started to flake off and float away in the breeze from the helicopter. Her cheeks became hollow. Her eyes became glassy and sunken. She was slipping away right before their eyes. Her screams were loud enough to be heard over the roar of the helicopter.

Scylla lent down and said something to Alder. She smiled as the dying woman clawed at her trying to save herself. Tally had to look away, unable to watch anymore. Abigail and Adil looked horrified at what they were seeing. Raelle and Khalida’s eyes hadn’t left Scylla.

Women were dropping out of the helicopter and racing towards the duo on the ground. Scylla pulled away from Alder and looked up at the people standing on the cliff edge. She was out of time.

Khalida was visible for a second as she nodded at Scylla. Scylla nodded to her and turned back to Alder. Before she could plunge her knife into Alder’s heart, she’s thrown off of her feet by a multiple person wind strike. She slammed into the canyon wall once again, the sickening crunch could be heard over the sound of the helicopter and the women yelling bellow them. Raelle’s scream, however, could not be heard.

Scylla rolled onto her back and looking up towards the sky she said, “ _Run._ ”

Her eyes rolled back and within seconds she was being swarmed by soldiers. They roughly dragged her body upwards and clasped a silencer over her bloody mouth. She was dragged away by the women. Those left behind cried out as they realized who the other person was. They yelled and screamed and tried to shake her awake. The healer rushed forward and started to sing. Raelle prayed, as they threw Scylla’s limp body onto the helicopter, she prayed that Alder was dead. That this was the end. She was tired.

_Let it be the end._

She knew better though. She knew this was just the beginning.

* * *

Raelle couldn’t get the image of a beaten Scylla being dragged away from the body of Sarah Alder out of her head. She had looked half dead herself. It made Raelle feel sick. She knew that she shouldn’t, but it was like she told Anacostia; she still loved Scylla. And once again they were dragged away from each other.

She threw up twice as they made their way through the forest.

After the second time, the people around her deemed it time to take a break. The Tarim dropped their seed and everyone became visible again.

Khalida turned to the Bellweather unit and held out her hand to them. “I need your medals please.”

The three girls cast curious glances at each other. The reached towards their necks and pulled their medals from under their shirts. They lifted them up over their heads and held them out to Khalida in unison. The young girl grabbed them and stepped away.

“What are you going to do with them?” Abigail asked as Khalida started to walk away. She didn’t answer.

Raelle leaned against a tree behind her and slid to the ground. She ached. It was a deep, physical, emotional, and mental ache. She could sleep for years. She’d offer to heal her teammates, but she couldn’t muster the energy.

Abigail and Tally dropped down next to her. Abigail pulled a canteen out of her backpack and took a long pull before she offered it to Raelle. Raelle nodded gratefully and took a drink. The water was cold as it travelled down her parched throat. She pulled the canteen away from her lips and heaved a slow sigh. The exhaustion was starting to weigh her down.

She offered the canteen to Tally who took it with a small smile.

They sat in silence and watched Khalida place their metals on a small boulder. She sung a seed and the metals floated into the air. The seed became louder and all three metals went flying in different directions until they vanished from sight completely.

“What are you doing?” Abigail called in alarm.

Khalida walked back calmly, the seed continued to emit from her throat. Abigail and Khalida stared at each other for around five minutes. Never once did Khalida’s seed falter. Tally started to shift uncomfortably next to Raelle, the tension was making her anxious.

Raelle just wanted answers.

“Can someone please tell me what just happened?” she asked. The Tarim avoided eye contact with her, and Adil stared at his feet, scratching his neck.

Khalida shifted her gaze from Abigail to Raelle. Khalida stopped her seed and she moved to sit in front if the Bellweather unit. She pat the ground beside her and Adil sat next to her.

“Where would you like me to start?” Khalida asked.

“The end,” Raelle said her voice oozing with sarcasm. “Where do you think I want you to start?”

“The beginning then,” Khalida clarified, not picking up on Raelle’s annoyance.

“Yes!” the Bellweather unit responded in exasperation.

“Anacostia Quartermaine released Scylla Ramshorn when she found out about your mission. They staged a breakout. Scylla Ramshorn came to find us. We stole the prisoner transport intended to take her to the Caribbean and made our way to where I knew you would be. Scylla Ramshorn agreed to help save our people if we helped her save you from Sarah Alder. She provided our people with Salva and helped smuggle us out of the cave.” Khalida told the story without blinking. She stared at Raelle the entire time she was talking.

“We knew that Sarah Alder wanted to kill you, we saw what she was doing to her own people. That was when Scylla Ramshorn decided to intervene. We rescued your unit. Scylla Ramshorn was captured, and now we are going somewhere safe.”

The Bellweather unit just stared at the girl.

“How is it,” Abigail began in exasperation, “that you managed to tell us what happened without _telling_ us what happened?”

“For now you know all that you need to know.” Khalida tilted her head toward Abigail.

“Where is Scylla now?” Raelle asked. “Is she okay?”

“Scylla Ramshorn is alive,” Khalida said, looking back at Raelle, “if that is what you are wondering. Her wounds have been tended to and she is now under guard in the infirmary on your base. Rescue at this time is impossible.”

“How do you know all of this?” Tally asked.

“She’s a Diviner,” Abigail said, leaning forward to look at Tally. “Right? That’s how you know everything? You’ve divined it?”

“Yes,” Khalida said.

Raelle was inexplicably relieved. She was happy to hear that Scylla was alive; that she’ll be okay. But there was still a part of her that was tremendously furious at the other girl. Not only has she lied, but Raelle knew that she’s killed people. Innocent people. She knew that Scylla killed Porter. Anacostia told her about the mall. She felt like a bad person for being relieved that Scylla was alive. And she felt like a bad person for being angry at the girl who just saved her life. She couldn’t win.

“So what now?” she asked the group at large. She hoped that someone had an answer, because she was too tired to try and solve their problems at that moment.

Adil looked at his sister; Raelle, Tally, and Abigail followed his lead.

“Now we go to a safe place,” Khalida said.

“Hey,” Raelle said. “Do you maybe want to try that again? I don’t think it was vague enough.”

“There is no safe place,” Tally said. She leaned forward to allow for eye contact with every person in their small group. “They’ll find us wherever we go. It’s pointless.”

“Why are we running?” Abigail asked. “We should go back.”

“Sarah Alder is not dead,” Khalida told her calmly. “She will claim that you are Spree agents in order to cover for the women she killed. If you go back now, you will be arrested and sent to prison.”

“That’s bullshit,” Abigail said. “We’d explain what happened. We’d tell them the truth.”

“Is that really what you want?” Adil asked her his voice soft. “Risk your lives in the off chance they would believe you? Everyone from your mission is dead but you three and Alder? How do you think that’ll look? Who do you think they’ll believe, a couple of privates or the General of the United States Army? They’re going to investigate you. They’ll find everything Alder wants them to find.”

“We can’t just run away like cowards,” Abigail hissed. “Like Tally said, there is nowhere to run. Nowhere is safe. Just ask all of the people who have been thrown in jail for dodging the conscription.”

“Scylla said that her family would have to move every few weeks,” Raelle said. She stared down at her feet. “Look how it ended for them.”

“Yes, her parents were killed.” Khalida nodded. “But there is a place.”

“How do you know that?” Tally asked.

“Scylla Ramshorn told me.”

“Then she lied,” Abigail cried. “Why would someone who hates forced conscription enlist, when they had a safe place they could dodge it in without the fear of getting caught?”

“Some things are bigger than ourselves, Abigail Bellweather,” Khalida responded.

“What does that even mean?”

“It means she had her reasons,” Raelle said.

“Yes.”

“Is this what your little head nod was about?” Tally asked.

“Yes.” Khalida nodded her head again. “Scylla Ramshorn’s capture was not a part of her plan. She had been adamant about keeping her secret. No matter what I did I could not see it. When she knew we would be safe she allowed me into her mind thus, granting me access to the location.”

“Why are you still being so cryptic?” Raelle asked. It seemed as though Khalida was talking around something and Raelle couldn’t figure out what.

“It appears as though the information Scylla Ramshorn has given me is protected.” Khalida tilted her head and her furrowed her brows. “I know what I am trying to say, but I am unable to say it. It has been spelled.”

“What kind of magic can do that?” Raelle asked.

“Ancient magic,” Khalida told her. “A branch of ancient magic even I do not understand.”

“What does this have to do with this so called, ‘safe place’?” Abigail asked.

“Give me your hands,” Khalida said, holding out her own.

All four of them grabbed her hand. A series of images flashed through their minds. They saw Khalida press Scylla for the secret, they saw her probe her mind and find nothing but blackness. They watch as a beaten Scylla looked up and made eye contact with Khalida. They saw a few quick images and then once again their minds were filled with darkness.

“What was that?” Raelle asked, pulling her hand away from the young girl. “What were you showing us?”

“I was trying to show you Scylla Ramshorn’s secret, but as I told you it is protected.” Khalida was making gestures with her hands now, as she truly became animated. As though she found it all rather exciting. “You could not see everything that I could see. The magic was protecting it. There was noth-”

“Once again,” Abigail interrupted. “What does this have to do with this so called, ‘safe place’?”

“This place is important enough to garner ancient protection,” Khalida told Abigail. Raelle could swear that she was patronizing the older witch. “If it were fake they wouldn’t have gone through the trouble. Is that simple enough for you?”

Khalida stood and walked away before Abigail could answer.

“I’m sorry about that,” Adil apologized for his sister. “I think a small part of her really liked Scylla. She made Khalida laugh, it was the most bizarre thing I have ever witnessed.”

“Yeah,” Raelle offered him an understanding smile. “She has a habit of getting under people’s skin. Anacostia hated her, and now look, she’s the one who helped her escape.”

“I must say,” Adil said as he nodded knowingly, “she did seem to possess a certain charm.”

“Yeah,” Abigail said. “The chilling charm of the Devil himself.”

Raelle couldn’t stop the laugh that slipped through her lips. “She would have taken that as a compliment.”

“Let’s not forget that she’s murdered people,” Tally interjected and Raelle sobered. “Anacostia told you what she did.”

“She saved our lives,” Raelle weakly tried to defend Scylla.

“That doesn’t just magically make what she did okay, Raelle,” Tally told her harshly.

“I’m not saying it does,” Raelle snapped back. “But we also don’t know the whole story. Even Khalida said that she had her reasons.”

“Yeah, for hiding her super-secret safe place,” Abigail said. “Not for killing over a thousand people.”

“People are capable of change, Abigail,” Adil inserted himself into the conversation, trying to diffuse the storm that he could feel brewing between the three young women.

“You’re defending her?” Abigail was affronted. She looked pissed.

“Not everyone can grow up having their choices made for them,” Adil responded, his voice was firm. “Some people have to fight to survive, and along the way they have to make their own choices. They just try to do what they think is right. Sometimes people make the wrong choice. Making mistakes is a part of being human, Abigail. Some mistakes are worse than others, but it’s what we choose to do afterwards that shapes who we become. And whether you want to admit it or not, witches around the world are enslaved and forced to die for a fight that isn’t theirs. You’ve all lost people to that fight.”

Adil rose to his feet and stormed after his sister. Abigail’s eyes followed his retreating form, looking properly chastised. The unit sat in silence, each of them lost in their own train of thought.

“So what now?” Tally asked.

Raelle scooted closer and rested her head on the redhead’s shoulder. “For now, we’ll follow Khalida and her people. See where it takes us; see if it’s actually safe and not Spree. After that, I have no clue.”

“Not matter what happens, we stick together. Understood?” Abigail asked, resting her head on Raelle’s shoulder.

“Aye, aye, captain,” Raelle mumbled, her eyes started to slip closed. Nothing else was said as she finally allowed her exhaustion to overcome her and she drifted off into a deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can't wait for the next chapter, I'm super excited for it! Please comment! Feedback really helps!


	3. There's Two of Them

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tally and Abigail change their tune. There's a reunion or two. Some familiar new faces make an appearance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Idealizations of Death.  
> I don't preview, so sorry for any typos.  
> I am so stinking excited for this chapter! Please enjoy and let me know what you think!

Raelle had to admit that having a bunch of witches who can become invisible had been a huge advantage when it came to sneaking out of countries unseen. The military had set up check points all along the Russian border. And as she had discovered, people didn’t have to buy a plane ticket when they were invisible. They could fly for free.

The only problem was that they had fly in the cargo hold. They all had to huddle together while the Tarim sang to keep them warm. When Raelle had finally gotten to stretch her legs, she felt as though every joint in her body had popped. It took them an extra half hour after they had landed to sneak off of the plane. In their little groups, they would take turns slipping out when the baggage handler moved deeper into the hold.

As they slid down the baggage shoot, the little girl in the group before Raelle’s had shrieked with laughter. Everyone froze when they heard the sound, afraid that they were going to get caught. Luckily, the guy who was waiting at the bottom of the chute had been wearing headphones and hadn’t heard a thing. Raelle had been so sore when she reached the bottom of the chute, she struggled to stand. She didn’t get out of the way fast enough to avoid the next suitcase that came sliding down the chute. She had just gotten her feet under her and was ready to hop down. when the suitcase knocked her feet right out from under her. As she tumbled backwards she dragged Adil, Abigail, and Tally with her. All three girls yelped as Adil grunted in pain as his arm was yanked roughly by the falling girl.

Raelle walked with a limp for hours afterward. She had to resist the urge to smack Abigail for laughing every time she had to rub her tailbone. Tally at least had the decency to try and hide her amusement. They had walked into the city, Raelle hadn’t paid attention to which city it was, and followed Khalida right onto a practically deserted tour bus. Khalida still hadn’t told them where they were going. They had been rolling with her whims since the beginning and at that point, Raelle knew it was pointless to try and get any more information from her.

Raelle had winced unintentionally when she sat down and once again had to endure the smirks that both Abigail and Tally were sending her way. Raelle had felt absurdly validated when a stranger had tried to sit in the same seat that Abigail was occupying causing her to yelp in surprise. She also took a little pleasure in the smirk Adil had thrown her way. Abigail blushed for a good hour afterwards.

They had been traveling for weeks and the other two girls were starting to drive Raelle crazy. Most of that time they had been hiking through the Altay Mountains. Raelle had only made it through day two before she started fantasizing about harming her unit mates in their sleep. She loved them, really, she did, but everyday she was reminded that space was a good thing.

Abigail had been mopey for days when they started travelling because Adil wouldn’t talk to her and Tally could not stop talking about how this was all her fault and she should’ve just nodded along like a good little soldier, ‘if I had just walked away none of this would have happened’. Raelle had to continually talk herself out of snapping at the two. With everything that had happened, she really couldn’t give two shits about Abigail’s boy problems and Tally’s, “what-if’s”. Neither would do them any good right now.

Not to mention, she would have liked to just walk in silence and be left alone with her own thoughts.

She had no such luck.

She had even resorted to pretending to be asleep throughout the bus ride. It was uncomfortable, and her hand had gone numb hours ago because of the awkward angle she had to keep it in in order to hold onto Adil. The boy behind her seemed to be losing feeling in his hand as well because he was constantly flexing and shifting his hand to get the blood flow back into his fingers.

Raelle had almost cried with joy when the bus pulled to a stop at a rest stop in the middle of nowhere. They waited until everyone had filed out of the bus to stretch their legs before they followed. The sun made Raelle squint, it was immensely brighter outside than it was on the bus. She held her hands over eyes to block the light out and she couldn’t help but gasp.

There on her palm, for the first time in over a month was an ‘S’. Adil, and the girls’ heads snapped towards her at her gasp.

“What?” Tally asked worriedly. “What is it?”

Raelle wordlessly held out her hand to show her unit mates. Abigail’s eyebrows shot into her hairline and Tally’s jaw dropped.

“Does this mean-” Tally started and Raelle began to nod before she could finish.

“Scylla’s still alive,” Raelle finished for the girl. “They haven’t killed her yet.”

It had been a brief topic of discussion their first few days on the run. Scylla had tortured Sarah Alder. Something like that wouldn’t go unpunished. Nobody had said it out loud to Raelle, but she knew what they were thinking. The only possible punishment for a crime like hers was execution.

During those first few days, Raelle had prayed that Anacostia might save Scylla one more time. But when nothing had happened. When the other girl had not contacted her, she had started to believe the worst. With this sign now, the small part of her that had been holding out hope roared to life. She felt her chest expand, as though she were finally breathing for the first time since she watched Scylla get dragged away. The elephant that had been sitting on her chest was gone. She felt her heart swell with hope and a strange excitement, the bands of fear and worry snapping and falling to the ground in pieces.

She couldn’t help it, she was happy. Despite how she knew she should feel, she was relieved. And though she told it not to, her body settled with a steely resolve. It didn’t matter what she had to do she was going to get Scylla back.

She dropped Adil’s hand, becoming visible for the first time since the plane and she moved away from everyone else. She left them all behind as she walked. She didn’t look back once.

She was going to save Scylla.

* * *

“I hate to ask,” Scylla started, “but could I possibly bother you for a pair of earplugs? All this tortured screaming is killing my ears.”

“This could all be over if you told us what we want to know,” General Bellweather said.

Scylla remained stubbornly silent. She was hanging from the ceiling of her cell. Her feet barely reached the ground. They had been at this for hours. Over and over again, they would bring her to the brink of death, then they would bring a fixer in and it would start all over again. They only ever fixed her just enough to keep her alive.

General Bellweather nodded to the woman standing behind Scylla. The whip cracked through the air as it slashed across Scylla’s skin. They had resorted to this method of torture when they realized the couldn’t break her with seeds. When magical torture had failed, General Bellweather decided it would be best to torture her with a method she doubted Scylla had been trained to fight, judging by her unmarred skin.

It was not unmarred anymore. That was for sure.

Bellweather raised her hand and the whipping stopped. “Tell me where to find-”

“Your dignity?” Scylla cut in. She slowly and discreetly started to trace an ‘S’ on her palm. It was more out of habit than anything else. She knew that the person on the other side wouldn’t- shouldn’t- care. “I have no clue. You lost that _way_ before I was born. Though you could always check up your ass.”

“Funny,” Bellweather said. “You should take this show on the road. I’m sure plenty of people would love to pay to see a murder make pointless jokes.”

“I’ll tell you what’s pointless,” Scylla started, oh how she wanted to curl up and cry, “your husbands di-”

The whipping started again. This time it was unrelentless. Scylla screamed; she could feel all of her “healed” wounds open again. Her vision started to tunnel. She could feel herself slipping into the numbness unconsciousness provided. They whipped her until she passed out.

She didn’t know how long she was out, but when she woke up she was alone. And for the first time since this started she allowed herself to cry. The pain had become overwhelming. She felt the newly “healed” marks on her back split and start to bleed again. Everything was creaming in pain. They had lowered her to the ground so she was no longer dangling in the middle of the dungeon. It made her cry harder because she knew how much it would hurt when they hauled her back up by her wrists.

The door to her cell had started to slide open, and she swiped at her eyes in an attempt to hide her tears. She grimaced at the blood she felt smear across her cheeks.

“I must admit, this is much worse than the last time you had be locked up,” Scylla called, trying to sit up before anyone entered her cell. Her back screamed at her, and all she wanted was to scream back. “At least last time I got a chair.”

“Scyl?”

Scylla’s eyes snapped forward and her tears rushed back, burning her eyes.

“ _Scyl!_ ” She felt hands on her cheeks and she couldn’t respond. She only sobbed.

The shackles around her wrists were unlocked and gentle fingers traced her bruised and bleeding wrists. “What have they done to you?”

She was pulled into a hug. She tried to stop her crying but she couldn’t she clung tightly to Raelle’s shirt. Raelle’s arms wrapped around her back and Scylla flinched.

“Shh,” Raelle soothed her, bringing a hand up to stroke her hair. “It’ll be okay, just breathe. It’ll be okay. Shh. Shh.”

Scylla nodded as she muffled her sobs in Raelle’s neck.

“ _When you pass through the waters, I will be with you. Through the rivers, they shall not flood you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned._ ”

Scylla felt her pain start to ease away. Her wounds started to close up, and she felt like she could finally breathe fully. She felt Raelle stiffen in her arms and she pulled away when she realized Raelle was trying to continue healing her. “No Raelle,” Scylla said. She could feel some blood seeping through her shirt. “No more, please, I’m okay. You don’t need to do anymore, please.”

Raelle nodded and kissed her forehead. Scylla’s eyes slipped closed unwillingly. “Okay,” she whispered. “Okay, no more.”

They embraced again. Raelle held her gently, as though she were afraid Scylla might shatter right there in her arms.

“How did you find me?” Scylla mumbled into Raelle’s shoulder. “How did you get here, without getting caught?”

“I got your message,” Raelle breathed into her hair. “I got your message and I immediately contacted Anacostia. She helped us talk before, I figured she could do it again. We don’t have long,” she said in a rush. “We have to get you out of here before the guards wake up.”

“Did you-” Scylla pulled back to look at Raelle.

“I knocked them all out, Anacostia went through and made sure it would last a while.” Raelle stood and pulled Scylla to her feet. “But we need to go now.”

Scylla nodded as she followed Raelle out of her cell. They raced through the Necro facility, making their way to the exit as quickly as they could. They held each other’s hand the entire way. Scylla didn’t even try to pay attention to what was happening around her, she just stared at Raelle. She took everything in. The curve of her jaw. The wildness in her eyes. The jut of her chin. She thought that she would never see Raelle again, and yet, here she was. Saving her.

They dropped one another’s hands as they raced up the stairs. Raelle was taking them two at a time, while an injured, much slower, Scylla struggled taking one step at a time. Raelle busted through the door at the top of the stairs and turned, waving at Scylla, telling her to hurry.

Scylla’s entire body was on fire. She hated running on the best days, so of course she’d have to do it on the worst as well. Once she got to the top she swayed and Raelle was forced to catch her before she could fall back down the stairs. It was dark outside and Scylla could hear the buzzing of the forest ringing in her ears.

“Shh,” Raelle said, wrapping her arm around Scylla to support her weight as they stumbled away from the Necro facility. “I’ve got you.”

Raelle proceeded to haul Scylla through the trees, they pause frequently for Raelle to check their surroundings and for Scylla to catch her breath. When they finally break through the trees, they find Abigail and Tally waiting in a jeep. Abigail sat at the wheel, and when Tally saw Raelle and Scylla, she hopped out of the car and rushed to Scylla’s other side. She took the rest of Scylla’s weight and together, she and Raelle carried Scylla to the jeep.

“We need to hurry,” Tally said as they lifted Scylla into the back. “They’re coming.”

Raelle nodded as she raced around to the other side of the jeep. She hopped in and pulled Scylla down, placing her head in her lap.

“Glory’s unit is creating a distraction for the guards at the gate. We have five minutes,” Abigail called back to Raelle as she threw the car into gear.

“Then let’s go,” Raelle said. She cupped Scylla’s face and started stroking her cheek with her thumb.

“Why did you come?” Scylla asked. “I don’t deserve to be saved.”

“That’s not true,” Raelle whispered, her voice was thin as she fought back tears.

“It is,” Scylla whimpered.

“No, it’s not.”

“Yes, it is,” Scylla started to cry again. “You should have left me, now you’re in danger because of me. Again. I’m not worth it.”

“Oh, Scyl.” Raelle pushed the hair out of Scylla’s eyes. She wiped away the girls tears trying to fight back her own. “I saw everything. When I healed you I saw everything. I understand now. I understand. I am still _so_ angry with you, but I love you. I love you.”

She leaned down and pressed a kiss to Scylla’s split and swollen lips. The action causes Scylla to sob even harder. Though this time she felt so happy. She felt so relieved.

Raelle held her as she cried. She cradled her to her body as the jeep flew down the road. Tally looked over her shoulder and they could see the tears in her eyes. Raelle pressed kisses into Scylla’s hair and squeezes her tighter. They were going to make it; they were going to get away from the military and forced service. They were going to be free.

For the first time since the wedding, Scylla felt hope.

“I hope you enjoyed my little gift.” Scylla heard.

Everything around her vanished. The warmth and safety Raelle’s arms provided her disappeared. The roaring of the jeep was replaced with silence. The freedom. The hope. It was all gone.

She was hanging from the ceiling of her cell once again. She raised her head and found Sarah Alder standing in front of her.

“No,” Scylla whispered. She could feel everything inside of her breaking.

“Oh, yes,” Alder said with a vindictive smile. “You thought you could attack me. _Me_. And not suffer the consequences? Prison is too good for you Ramshorn. I’m going to see to it personally that when we finish here, you will be nothing but an empty. Broken. Useless. Pathetic. Shell of a person. You won’t even be a person at all.”

“You wo-” Scylla started; she was crying. She hated that she was crying in front of this woman.

“I won’t what?” Alder laughed in delight. “Get away with it? Oh, you silly insolent little girl. They think you’re being tortured for information on the Spree. They’re under order to do whatever it takes to get the information we need. They won’t question a thing.”

Scylla said nothing. She wanted to die. She didn’t understand why her body was still fighting when the rest of her had given up. She hated that it had come to this. Weeks of torture and it was as though everything she was fighting for just wasn’t enough anymore. She didn’t want to keep fighting. Why couldn’t she just go in peace. She had already said her goodbyes, there was nothing left for her to do.

She had always had one constant friend in her life. They understood each other. They worked well together. They had always kept their distance from one another. But they were close. They had had an understanding. They would never fight one another. And yet, when she was finally ready to embrace Death, it was nowhere to be found. It had turned its back on her.

“I’m going to enjoy our little sessions, Scylla,” Alder said to her with a smile. “You messed with the wrong witch.”

She literally had nothing left.

* * *

“Raelle,” Tally called as she chased after her friend. “Raelle, stop!”

“We can’t just leave her Tally,” Raelle cried. “We have to save her.”

“Just think this through,” Tally pleaded. “If we go now, without a plan, we’ll only end up just like her.”

“But she might not last long enough for us to come up with a plan.” Raelle ran her hands through her hair, forcing back her tears. “They’ll kill her.”

“They won’t,” Abigail placed her hand on Raelle’s shoulder, ducking to look her in the eyes. “They won’t kill her, she’s too valuable. She has a bad habit of knowing too much.”

“But- I- she-” Raelle tried to inhale a breathe but it was stuttered and painful. She folded at her waist and placed her hands on her knees to support herself. Her legs gave out and she fell to her knees. Tally and Abigail followed her, the former pulling her into a hug. “I love her.”

“I know,” Tally whispers. She presses her lips to Raelle’s temple briefly before replacing her lips with her forehead. “I know.”

“I’m sorry,” Raelle whispered. “I know she’s done awful things. But I love her.” Her voice was high and thin, her throat constricting around her words. “I love her, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Tally said, her voice starting to break too. She hated seeing her friend hurt so much. “It’s okay.”

“We don’t control who we love,” Abigail said, reaching up to brush Raelle’s hair out of her face. “We can try and fight it, try to force ourselves to love other people, but it just doesn’t work like that.”

“I’m sorry,” Raelle repeated. “I’m so sorry.” Her body was wracked with sobs.

“It’s okay,” Abigail told her. “You knew her in a different way than we did. She loves you. She turned her back on everything she believed in for you. She was free, she could have run and saved herself. Instead, she stole a plane and flew all the way to some mountains in Russia to save you. I’ve been thinking about what Adil said,” Abigail grabbed Raelle’s hands and held them in her own, “and he’s right. People change. Your love changed Scylla, and her love changed you. You showed each other that there was a better way. And that is so beautiful.”

“I know we said that what she’s done for you and us doesn’t change what she did for the Spree.” Tally turned Raelle’s face towards hers. “But we were wrong, everyone deserves a second chance, and Scylla has been trying to redeem herself, for you.”

“I’m so angry at her. A part of me knows I should hate her. And I’m so angry, I want to hate her, but I can’t,” Raelle whispered. She tried to hang her head, but Abigail pulled it back up, making Raelle face her.

“And that’s okay,” Abigail told her. “Love and anger are not mutually exclusive. It’s not as though you can have only one or the other. Just because you’re angry with someone, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t love them anymore. We can love someone while we’re angry at them. It’s okay.”

“I know you two hate her,” Raelle said. “I’m sorry, but I have to save her.”

“And we will,” Abigail said. “I’ll be the first to admit, I hold no love for the girl. I want to kill her for what she’s done. But she also sacrificed herself to save you. Th-”

“That shows us that there is still good in her,” Tally finished for Abigail. “She chose good. She saved us, twice in your case. She deserves a second chance.”

“And when we save her, that’s what she’ll get,” Abigail said. “But first we have to get somewhere safe.”

Raelle nodded and rose to her feet. “I’ll be right there; I just need a second.”

“Don’t take too long,” Abigail said. “The bus will leave soon.”

“We will not be needing the bus anymore.” The sound of Khalida’s voice made all three girls jump into the air with yelps. “We will go on foot from here.”

Tally and Abigail just nodded and moved past the young girl. They tried to put as much distance between themselves and the girl without looking rude. The girl remained where she was and looked at Raelle.

“I just need a minute alone,” Raelle said, hoping the young girl would leave her be.

“It will be okay,” Khalida said. “It will not happen right away, but it will be okay.”

Her words made Raelle feel a little better. Her breathing came easier. But she couldn’t fully calm down, there was still one thing that was weighing on her.

“She thinks I hate her,” she said, her voice breaking again. “They could be torturing her, she could die, and she thinks I hate her.”

“Yes.”

“You’re supposed to tell me that she knows I love her.” Raelle’s heart was breaking all over again.

“I do not find it productive to lie. It is best that we face the facts head on,” Khalida responded.

“I hate you,” Raelle said.

“Yes.” Khalida tilted her head and continued to stare at Raelle. “I understand that you are upset, but if you know the truth and deal with it, you’ll be better equipped for when we see her again.”

“So we will see her again?” Raelle felt hope creeping its way back into her chest.

“Yes,” Khalida responded. She turned to walk away.

“I still hate you,” Raelle called after her.

“Scylla Ramshorn said she hated me too,” Khalida said and Raelle felt like she had been punched in the gut. “She also didn’t mean it.”

Jesus, she hated this kid.

They were trudging their way through the forest, making their way up the side of the mountain. They had left the rest stop days ago. Every day they had been walking all day and through most of the night. Raelle felt that it was safe to say that they were as far away from civilization as they could get. And they still had a ways to go according to Khalida.

Raelle had been distracted for the past four days. She couldn’t stop thinking about Scylla. She wasn’t religious, but she prayed to whoever would listen that Scylla would be okay.

“Hey.” Tally’s hand slipped into Raelle’s. “How are you doing?”

Abigail slipped her arm through Raelle’s as she pulled up alongside them.

“I’m okay,” Raelle gave her a week smile. “I’m just worried.” She looked at her palm. The ‘S’ had been appearing daily. A small part of her could feel Scylla through the mark. She hoped that Scylla could feel her too.

“We’ll figure it out,” Abigail told her. She bumped their shoulders together as they walked.

They all paused when they reached the top of the mountain. “Wow,” Tally breathed. “It’s beautiful.”

“Yeah,” Raelle agreed. Her eyes were drawn to a lake that lay at the bottom of the mountain in the distance. It’s blue was so vivid. Even from this distance. It reminded her of Scylla’s eyes; the thought made her heart clench.

They admired the view for a while longer while everyone else rested and some of the Tarim went hunting. After a few hours they started to make their way down the mountain.

It wasn’t until they reached the bottom that they realized that something felt different.

“Do you feel that?” Raelle asked. Abigail and Tally nodded at her. “I can’t place it, but something is different.”

“We’ll deal with it when we stop for the day,” Abigail said decisively.

They kept walking, but Raelle couldn’t shake the feeling. She really started to get suspicious when Khalida had stopped leading the group and Adil had taken over. Raelle ran to catch up to Khalida.

“What’s wrong,” Raelle asked. “Where are we going?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” Khalida said with a large smile. “We’re going to the lake.”

“Okay, but why aren’t you-”

The air was filled with a whistling sound and Raelle staggered backwards when an arrow embedded itself in the ground at her feet. All around her the Tarim froze and threw their hands into the air in surrender.

“Stop,” a voice called from somewhere in the trees. “If you take another step, the next round will enter your bodies.”

“Not a chance,” Abigail said. She looked at her unit, receiving nods of understanding from each of them. Together the three of them wind strike in the direction they heard the voice come from.

Nothing happened.

“Wha-” Abigail started; confusion filled her voice.

The voice in the trees started laughing. “Did you really think that would work?” Laughter rang from all directions. “Magic doesn’t work here. Now, state your business or I shoot.”

“Please,” Tally said. “We have kids with us.”

“I don’t give a shit,” the voice called. As though to make their point, an arrow embedded itself into the ground at Khalida’s feet. “State your business.”

Khalida smiled, “We are in search of a safe haven, Scylla Ramshorn sent us.”

“Archer’s ready,” the voice called. Then twenty feet in front of them, a young girl stepped out from behind the trees. “If any of you move, my people will shoot.”

“You’re a child,” Abigail said in indignation.

“Well spotted,” the girl’s voice was full of sarcasm. Her face was covered by a bandana and goggles, and a hood covered her hair, but there was something about her that was familiar to Raelle. She pointed to Khalida, “You said Scylla sent you.”

“Yes,” Khalida said, her hands still raised above her head.

“Then why are you with soldiers?”

Raelle stepped forward but stopped suddenly when an arrow pierced the ground in front of her. Behind her she could hear the little girl being comforted by her mother. “Please, we’re deserters. Scylla sent us; I swear it.”

“I wasn’t talking to you,” the girls voice was harsh, but Raelle could still hear the youth behind her words. She pointed to Khalida again. “If she sent you then you have the code word.”

They all looked at Khalida, her smile fell from her face and she looked pale. “I don’t know.” For the first time since Raelle met her, Khalida sounded scared.”

“You’re a Diviner,” Abigail urged her gently. “Divine it.”

“Magic doesn’t work here,” Adil reminded her. “She can’t.”

“No code word, no admittance,” the girl said. “Which means we kill you all.”

“Why would you kill us if we don’t know a code word?” Tally asked, her voice was desperate.

“Because then you have no proof that Scylla sent you,” the girl said. Her voice had raised multiple decibels. “And the only way you can know about this place if she didn’t send you is if you killed her. That’s the only way the spell that protects this place can be broken. Now,” her voice cracked, “are you going to give me the code word, or am I going to have to kill you?”

Raelle dug through her memories with Scylla. Maybe she may have dropped a hint about what the word might be in one of their many talks. She racked her brain and each time; she could only come up with one possibility.

“Please,” Tally said. “Please, we don’t know everything happened so fast-”

“ _Lighthouse_!” Raelle called stepping forward again. “Lighthouse,” she repeated softly, desperately.

Silence rang through the trees as the girl steeped forward. She pushed her hood back and used both hands to remove her face coverings. Raelle felt the breath forced from her lungs, she felt like she’d been kicked in the gut. The girl held out her hand to Raelle, with a large smile. “In that case, welcome to Olympus. Sorry, for the rough welcome, you can never be too careful when it comes to people in uniforms like yours. We had to be sure.”

Raelle still hadn’t grabbed her hand. The girl cocked an eyebrow and looked at the other women behind the blonde, all of whom had looks of utter shock on their faces. She dropped her hand in confusion, shoving it in her pocket. Once again, Raelle recognized the gesture.

“My name is Kinsley Ramshorn, it’s nice to meet you….” She trailed off giving Raelle a chance to answer.

Raelle did answer, though it was very vague. “Raelle. Collar. Raelle Collar.”

“Nice to meet you,” Kinsley said she had a familiar teasing glint in her eye, “Raelle. Collar. Raelle Collar. Must get a bit repetitive huh?”

“Uh,” Raelle trailed off. She had to shake herself. “Yeah, sorry. I just wasn’t expecting-”

“A twelve year old to kick your ass?” Kinsley laughed. “Yeah, I get that a lot.” She gave the women in front of her a weird look. “Well, if you’d just like to follow us, we’ll take you into town.”

As if on cue, a small army of people stepped out from behind the trees. They were all smiling now, their weapons were strapped to their backs and the Tarim surged forward to follow them.

“So we’re just going to follow Satan’s mini me into the woods?” Abigail asked. Then she looked at Raelle, “Sorry, I didn’t mean that. I’m just anxious.”

“It’s okay,” Raelle whispered back to her.

“Did you know that Scylla had a sister?” Tally asked gripping Raelle’s upper arm tightly.

Raelle just shook her head as her eyes followed Kinsley as she walked in front of them.

“If anyone is hungry, Chris has some junk food in his backpack.” Kinsley turned to face the people who were following her and continued walking backwards. She pointed over her shoulder and a tall guy with thick eyebrows waved excitedly. “Jade has a mix of healthy and junk food, and Noah over there, he’s boring, he only has healthy stuff.” She made a face at the little girl who giggled and started hopping as she walked. One of the guys ahead of them protested Kinsley’s words. Raelle assumed that was Noah.

“You’re the one who made me grab this pack,” he cried out defensively. Kinsley winks at the people following her group. The little girl giggled again.

“I just wanted to pack with all of the candy,” she whisper’s to the girl raising one finger over her lips and holding out a lollipop with the other. The girl squealed and snatched it up.

“Where are we going?” Adil asked. “we’ve been walking for days. And we haven’t had a proper shower in weeks.”

Kinsley offered him a sympathetic wince before turning forwards and calling over her shoulder, “Trust me, everyone here understands. So, no judgement. And don’t worry, we’re almost there. We’ll get you all set up in some of the spare cabins. We have running heated water. We set up solar panels and generators a few years ago, so everything is electric. When this place first started, we’d have to bathe in the lake. A bad experience with a fish pushed Scylla into finding an alternative.”

She smiled again. Everyone here seemed to be ridiculously happy. It was kind of off putting for Raelle and the others.

“Why doesn’t our magic work here?” Tally asked.

“Well,” Kinsley said. She had tilted her head and furrowed her brow. She bit her lip softly as she thought about it. “Scylla explains it so much better, but I’ll try.”

“You got this Kinsley,” Chris called to her. She flipped him off in response. “Uh-oh. If Scylla had seen that you’d be drawn and quartered.”

She ignores him.

“When we use magic we manipulate the vibrations of the world around us to get them to do what we want. This particular part of the world, this elevation, this climate, these mountains, this ground, these trees, the lake, and everything in between, emits their own vibrations.” She spread out her arms and spun in a circle. Drawing her audience’s eyes to the world around them. “Their vibrations vibrate at a high enough frequency that it cancels out our magic. We can’t produce and seeds because the second we try; this place basically stops them before they can happen. There’s a lot more science behind it, but I never really understood it. Scylla would get to excited and then I’d lose her to her nerd talk.”

Raelle went to say something but the words froze in her throat at the sight in front of her. Just past the tree line Raelle could see what looked like a small town. The Tarim behind her started to chatter excitedly.

“Why would you want to live in a place where you can’t use magic?” Abigail asked. “You’re a witch.”

“We live in a place without magic because it’s the only way, we get to choose what we do with our lives. There is no conscription here. We can’t be found here. No matter how hard they might try.” Kinsley’s face had turned stoic. “Everyone here is going to get to live a long happy life of _their_ choice. If that’s a problem,” she pointed back the way they came, “you can leave.”

“I didn’t mean to offend,” Abigail said. They were making their way to the center of the small town. If it could even be called a town, it was so small. “I just meant; how could you not use your magic? It’s a part of you.”

“We use magic,” Kinsley said with exasperation. “Just not here. Everyone hikes up to the top of the mountain and practices at least once a week. Like I said, this place is all about getting to make a choice. That’s the way Scylla wanted it to be.”

“Why would Scylla decide?” Tally asked and Kinsley scowled.

“It’s a long story.”

People were coming outside, moving to greet the newcomers. Now that everyone was distracted, Raelle decided to talk to Kinsley, ask her about what had been bothering her.

“I’m sorry if I was weird back there,” she said with an awkward jerk of her head. “I just didn’t know that Scylla had a sister. And you look just like her.”

“Oh I completely understand. We do look a lot alike, but we have different noses, mouths, and ears. If you think _we_ look alike, you should see-”

“ _Kinsley,_ ” a small voice called over the den of the crowd. Raelle turned and tried to locate the source of the voice. There was an odd clicking sound followed by another, “ _Kinsley_!”

Kinsley moved forward and ducked down, her sudden movement drawing Raelle’s attention to them once again. Kinsley straightened and on her hip resided a small girl. The resemblance to Scylla was uncanny. She looked like a mini Scylla. Raelle’s jaw dropped.

Next to her Tally gasped, "There's two of them."

“What the hell is happening?” Abigail whispered. She was so confused.

“Duke, I want you to meet the new people. New p-” Kinsley started to introduce the girl to the group, but the young child seemed to want to do it herself.

“New people,” Duke held her hand out in front of her, “I’m Duke Ramshorn. It’s nice to meet ya!” She kept her hand in the air in front of her. No one moved to grab it. They didn’t know what to do, the girl was facing the wrong direction.

“Almost Dukes, I turned you around a bit. Try again,” Kinsley said softly to the girl.

The girl clicked her tongue four times, turning her head a little bit with each click. When she was done she turned her body a little bit and moved her hand to the right, now pointing it directly at the Bellweather unit.

“Hi, new people, I’m Duke Ramshorn. It’s nice to meet ya!” Raelle melted a little bit at the sound of Duke’s speech impediment. It was adorable.

Tally wasted no time shooting forward to shake the little girl’s hand. Abigail was quick to follow, and Raelle brought up the rear. When she looked into the little girl’s eyes she found that they were unfocused but they were looking in her general direction.

“It’s nice to meet you Duke,” Raelle said. “My name is Raelle, I’m shaking your hand right now.”

Tally picked up on what she was doing and introduced herself as well, “Hi, Duke. I’m Tally, I shook your hand first.”

Abigail followed their lead. And they were all met with brilliant smiles from both Ramshorn girls. “Nice to meet ya, ladies.” The two of them echoed together. Abigail’s eyes shot wide open and Tally had to stifle a laugh. They had looked just like Scylla when they did that. It was uncanny, and kind of creepy. They lasted a few seconds before the three of them burst into laughter for the first time in over a month.

“Why are you laughing?” Duke asked. She tilted her head trying to listen for the reason.

“Your sister said the same thing to us once,” Tally informed her.

The little girl gasped, “You know my-”

“Yeah,” Abigail said with a gentle smile. “We know your sister.”

“Speaking of,” Kinsley started, her face turning serious once again, “where is my sister?”

* * *

Scylla had stopped screaming days ago. She just didn’t have it in her anymore. She was done. She knew she wouldn’t talk; they knew she wouldn’t talk so what was the point of all of this? Why was she still here?

She knew the reason. Alder.

She had heard Alder when Bellweather had voiced her doubts.

_“Is this really necessary? She doesn’t know anything,” General Bellweather said. She glanced over her shoulder at the girl, and she felt guilt fill her lungs. “This is excessive for anyone. Let alone a young woman who has no idea what we’re talking about.”_

_“It is necessary,” Alder responded. “How did she know about the mission? How did she escape? How did she know I’d be defenseless without my biddies? Where is your daughter and her unit? How’d she convince them to join the Spree? Who is her inside man? These are all questions she has the answer to and I’ll be damned if we don’t get them!”_

_General Bellweather looked like she had sucked on a lemon. “Yes ma’am.”_

_Even she knew this was wrong._

_She disappeared._

_Scylla woke up on the floor of her cell. She couldn’t help it, she started crying. Her body was screaming in pain and she couldn’t do anything about it. Her “healed” wounds were on fire. And her wrists were killing her. She cried harder at the thought of how much it would hurt when they hauled he back up into the air by her wrists._

_The door to her cell had started to slide open, and she swiped at her eyes in an attempt to hide her tears. She grimaced at the blood she felt smear across her cheeks._

_“I must admit, this is much worse than the last time you had be locked up,” Scylla called, trying to sit up before anyone entered her cell. Her back screamed at her, and all she wanted was to scream back. “At least last time I got warm meals.”_

_“Scyl?”_

_Scylla’s eyes snapped forward and her tears rushed back, burning her eyes._

_“Scyl!” She felt hands on her cheeks and she couldn’t respond. She only sobbed._

_The shackles around her wrists were unlocked and gentle fingers traced her bruised and bleeding wrists. “What have they done to you?”_

“It’s your lucky day Ramshorn,” Alder said as she walked into the cell. “We’re shaking things up today.”

Scylla just stared at the ground. She didn’t care anymore. She knew no one was coming. She knew that they were all, hopefully, where she sent them.

“I’ve been looking into your background and it turns out, you were there the night your family died.” Alder’s smile was wide as she slowly approached Scylla’s dangling form, “That must have been very traumatizing for you. I’m so sorry.”

Her wicked smile said otherwise

“You shouldn’t have interfered,” Alder said. “Now you’re going to suffer the consequences. We are going to have so much fun together.”

Her new biddies hissed behind her.

Scylla didn’t even look up from the ground.

This was hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Abigail and Tally changed their tune because they realized how much their attitude was adding to Raelle's pain.  
> Also please review! The next chapter will hopefully be up soon!  
> Comments make me happy and feedback really helps, so if you can please comment!


	4. The Truth is so Much Worse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter contains the torture and death of a baby. More info in the Notes. SUMMARY: Scylla tells Anacostia what really happened to her family. The Bellweather unit get's settled in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING!!! TRIGGER WARNING!!! This chapter will contain details of the torture and death of a baby. If you don't want to read that, skip to the horizontal line thing. It was upsetting for me to write, so please take care. If you know you won't be able to handle it, skip ahead. Please.  
> SECOND: I have changed the age Scylla was when her parents died. She was twelve. She left Porter for different reasons, not her parents dying. He wanted to serve, she didn't for obvious reasons.  
> THIRD: This chapter is very dialogue heavy.

Scylla was standing in her garage. She could hear the screaming coming from the house. She peeked through the crack in the door and she saw her mom thrashing on the ground, clutching at her ears. She could hear her dad screaming something over and over again, but it was distorted by the pain in his screams. She held her breath to listen. He was telling her to run. Again and again. Run. Run. _Run_!

She had tears running down her cheeks as she grabbed everything within reach and busted out of the back. As she was hopping the fence, she heard the screaming cease. The back door slammed closed and she could hear them yelling about there being another one. She ran. She ran as fast as she could.

She could barely see two feet in front of her because her tears were clouding her vision.

The world around her disappeared, and Scylla could only stare at her the grungy ground. She didn’t know how many more times she’d have to watch her parents die, but it was slowly killing her. The only saving grace was that she knew it was fake. It wasn’t like the visions of Raelle they put her through. Those always felt real. Even when she knew better, it felt real.

These were different. All the details that were missing gave it away. She never had to truly relive that night. There were things that had been left out of the report. She had read them; she knew that the soldiers who had done it had tried to hide everything. The only reason she was even sort of sane was because she could tell it wasn’t real. It didn’t match her memories.

That was the only saving grace. She held onto her truth as tightly as possible. If she were going to die, she’d die knowing the truth. She’d die knowing something that Alder didn’t.

“I think that’s enough for today,” Alder said. “You have a visitor that’s been waiting for a chance to talk to you.”

The door slid open and Alder moved to the side with a smirk. Anacostia stepped into the cell; her demeanor was as stoic as the day they met.

“Anacostia,” Scylla called in mock delight. “It’s so good to see you. How’s the head? Don’t be too embarrassed. I’ve heard that many decorated soldiers have had the shit knocked out of them with a chair. They even have a support group on Tuesdays. They’re a real supportive lot. You-”

Anacostia strode forward and punched Scylla in the mouth. She laughed as she spat out some blood.

“So, I’m guessing you’re still angry about that?” Scylla offers the woman a bloody smile.

Another punch.

“Oh a left hook,” Scylla said. “We’re shaking it up a little bit. At least it’ll be even.”

This time the punch was to her gut which sends her into a coughing fit.

“Will you be okay, Sergeant?” Alder asked. She was smiling as she asked the question. “She’s been nothing but trouble for Petra.”

“I’ll be alright,” Anacostia said. “She’s locked up and I have Isadora guarding the entrance to the facility. There is no way she’s escaping for a second time.”

“Good to hear.”

“Thank you, Sarah,” Anacostia said. “I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time.”

She shot Alder a wicked smile that was returned immediately. “I’m glad. Let me know if you get anything out of her. You did so well last time.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Are you talking about the time I kicked her ass?” Scylla asked. “Because if you are Sarah, you and I have two very different definitions of doing well.”

Anacostia punched her again and everything went black for a few seconds before she blinked her vision clear. She couldn’t think straight as her head pounded where Anacostia had hit her. She felt bile rise in her throat, and though she tried, she couldn’t stop it. She jerked her head to the side and emptied her stomach onto the ground. She was thankful that it hadn’t landed near her feet.

The door to her cell slammed closed and in the next second she felt Anacostia’s hands on her face.

“You just don’t know when to shut up Ramshorn,” Anacostia grumbled as she started to heal Scylla. “Why do you always push it so much?”

“I thought you’d like a taste of my sunny disposition,” Scylla groaned as the pain started to ease.

“It was a rhetorical question Scylla, shut up,” Anacostia said. She removed her hands from Scylla and moved to lower her to the ground. As her chains loosened Scylla’s body curled inwards as she was slowly lowered to her knees on the floor. Her eyes filled with tears of relief.

“Thank you,” she told Anacostia. “Thank you.”

Anacostia nodded and made her way in front of Scylla. She waited until the young witch looked up at her before she lowered herself down in front of her.

“What have they done to you?” Anacostia asked. Her eyes scanned Scylla’s broken form and it made her feel sick.

“Their torture seeds weren’t working,” Scylla told her. She shifted her body until she was laying on her side, the pain in her back eased as she did so. She made sure that she was still looking at Anacostia as she continued, “They thought physical torture would work better. No luck there. At least not yet. Your beloved General though, she seems to think psychological torture will work best.”

“I’m sorry,” Anacostia said. She frowned with sympathy. “I wish I could help, but I can’t. I’m only in here because she thinks I’m going to torture you with magic that’s outlawed by the Hague.”

“Do you know what _she’s_ been “torturing” me with Anacostia?” Scylla asked, she used air quotes around the word torturing. “It started with visions of me being rescued. Of Raelle saving me. She’d give me hope, and then take it all away. Every single time she tricked me into believing it was real. I’ve been losing my grip on reality for days now.”

“The best way to break someone, is to rob them of their reality,” Anacostia said. Once again, she felt sick.

“Ding, ding, ding,” Scylla cheered. “Got it in one sergeant. Lucky for me though, she changed the vision a while ago, I can’t really keep track of how long it’s been though. I’ve got no sense of time anymore.”

“Why is Alder changing the visions lucky?” Anacostia tilted her head so she could look Scylla in the eyes.

“She got it wrong,” Scylla whispered conspiratorially, then pretended to gasp in surprise. “I know, ‘there’s no way, Sarah Alder never makes mistakes’. But you see, she’s been showing me the day my parents died, and here’s the funny part, she got it all wrong, I can tell now when I’m in a vision, it doesn’t feel real because she’s wrong!”

Scylla started to laugh manically. Anacostia just furrowed her brow. “I’ve read the report of what happened to your parents. They surrendered, but the military police had been ordered to make an example out of them. So, they were killed instead. The soldiers had been ordered to use seed twenty one, the Seed of Agony, so that their deaths would send a message.”

Scylla’s face had lost its aloof look. Anacostia could tell that she was done joking now.

“But,” she started, “did you know that those women who killed my parents left some _very_ important details out of their report?”

“What are you talking about?” Anacostia asked her.

Scylla’s face took on a wistful look. “You see, contrary to what Alder and the military believes, I’m not an only child.”

“Why are you telling me this?” Anacostia asked. Her voice was full of surprise.

“I’m going to die here,” Scylla told her. “Someone needs to know the truth.”

“Okay.”

“My parents had both wanted a lot of kids. My dad had always said that they had wanted enough to form a family band. My mom just loved kids.” She paused and wiped her runny nose. “They had six. Four girls and two boys. My older sister, she was my hero, I wanted to be just like her when I was older. My older brother was a sweetheart. Then there was me, then my little sister, then the twins. The twins had just come home from a Cession hospital when it happened.”

Anacostia felt her stomach drop. She didn’t want to hear this.

“We had just gotten home from school that day. Calypso, my older sister, had rushed to grab the twins. They hadn’t even been named yet. We were going to vote as a family. That was how we were all named.” Scylla took a deep breath. “Calypso and I fought over which twin we’d get. Ceb, had already gone inside with my parents. Caly had gotten my baby brother out of his car seat and she laughed and said, ‘You better hurry, bubba, I’m coming for her next.’ I knew she was joking but I got so flustered I couldn’t get her car seat out. Kinsley, my little sister, had stayed to try and help me.”

Scylla’s voice had become tight and her eyes burned with tears. Anacostia reached out and grabbed her hand.

“There had been a knock on the front door,” Scylla continued. “I remember Kinsley had wanted to go see who it was, but I begged her to help me with the seat before Caly came back. We heard yelling coming from inside the house. Then I heard screaming. I told Kinsley to stay with our baby sister, to keep her quiet. I was going to go help.” Scylla was crying now; this was the first time she had ever talked about what really happened. What she saw.

“I snuck over to the garage door, it had been left open, cause it would always get stuck, we always left it open. When I looked inside, my family was being forced into the kitchen by soldiers. My parents kept saying, ‘We surrender. We surrender. We surrender.’ But they just didn’t care. They started to use seed twenty one on my parents. But my brother-”

She had to cut herself off. This part was one of the hardest for her to deal with.

“What?” Anacostia asked gently. “Your brother what?”

“Ceb, tried fighting back. He jumped one of the soldiers, but they fought him off easily. They didn’t stop there though; they beat him within an inch of his life.” Scylla said. “He just laid there coughing up blood. My parents had screamed their heads off the second they touched my siblings.

“They saw it as an opportunity to really get to my parents. To torture them. They slit Ceb’s throat and he bled out right in front of my parents and my sister. All of them screamed for my brother. I was so scared I couldn’t move, let alone scream. Kinsley, god she was so brave. She could hear everything but she didn’t make a sound. She covered our little sister’s ears so that she wouldn’t hear and start crying. I just stood there. I couldn’t do anything. My baby brother was screaming, the noises had scared him, and Caly was trying to calm him down but it wasn’t working. They kept telling her to ‘shut that baby up’. She couldn’t, she tried, but he was so scared. So they did it for her.”

Scylla was crying again. Anacostia watched as her face crumpled, and she could feel her own eyes burning with unshed tears.

“They used seed twenty one on my baby brother.” Scylla’s voice was high pitched and fragile. Her throat was constricting with her effort to keep talking through her sobs. “They used the Seed of Agony on a six day old baby. He _screamed_. As loud as his little lungs let him. But his little heart barely lasted ten seconds. He died right there in my sister’s arms. There was a moment of complete silence. Even some of the soldiers had been shocked at what their commanding officer did, but none of them stopped her. Caly tried to fight back, but they turned on her next. One by one they had killed my siblings and forced my parents to watch as they did it. I can still hear my parent’s screams. They sounded so broken.

“My siblings were murdered, my parents were being tortured, and all I could think about was how we had just been fighting about taking our shoes off in the car. I couldn’t move. I just stared at my brother’s sneakers and my sister’s sandals. I kept waiting for them to move. The slightest twitch, anything to let me know they were alive, but nothing happened. Then my mom threw herself over my brother, and my dad started to rock my sister back and forth. The baby was still in her arms. I had never seen a baby so _still_ before. They were distraught.”

Anacostia started to cry with Scylla. She gave her hand a squeeze of reassurance.

“It hit me then, that if I didn’t do something, they would kill us too. So, as slowly as I could, I backed away from the door and I went back to the car. I don’t think I even allowed myself to breathe I was so scared they’d hear me. I told Kinsley to get ready to go. I was waiting for everything to go quiet again. I got our sister out of the car seat. She was still sound asleep. Kinsley was crying, but she was trying so hard to be quiet. It made everything worse in my opinion. She was five and she had just witnessed something horrible, and she had to stay quiet.

“We traded places, I covered the baby’s ears and told Kinsley to grab the diaper bag and our go bags. She tripped on her way to grab the go bag and I swear, it was like my heart stopped. We froze and waited for what felt like hours before we moved again. They couldn’t hear us over my parents. I remember feeling, so _numb_. The only thing that registered was the chill of the garage floor against my bare feet. It was so painful in contrast to my numbness, but I kept moving. Kinsley had slipped the go bag on. It was more than half her size but she had looked so determined to carry it.

“I told her that we had to run and that since I was faster, I’d have to carry her. ‘It’ll be like story time,’ I told her. ‘When I’m the horse and you’re the knight. And we have to save the princess.’ Our parents were still screaming. Kinsley and I were crying and the baby just slept in my arms. I had pressed her ear,” Scylla started to demonstrate with her free hand, “to my chest so she could hear my heartbeat. And I kept her other ear covered with my hand. She was so tiny, I thought she was going to break in my hands. She was so tiny. Kinsley stuck her head through the handles of the diaper bag so that it hung from her neck. When she climbed onto my back the bulk of the diaper bag pushed her away from my back so her grip around my neck was tight. Her hands were barely able to clasp, but when they did, they held on in a vice like grip.

“I knew we had to go, but I just had to see my parents one last time. They were screaming so loudly I couldn’t even hear the seed anymore.” Scylla had stopped crying. Now her voice was just raw and her nose sounded stuffy. “They were thrashing on the ground next to Ceb and Caly, and my dad kept screaming the same thing over and over again. It took me a while to understand because it was so distorted by the screaming. He kept screaming run.

So I did. I busted out of the back of my house; the sudden movement had woken the baby. So she started crying. At first I thought we would be okay. There’s no way they could have heard us over our parents. But then our parents were dead, and the baby was still screaming. They heard us as I was climbing over the fence. I remember seeing the commanding officer’s face in the kitchen window as she watched us escape. She looked so furious.

“I ran faster than I ever had before. The adrenaline rush made the weight of Kinsley and the bags feel like nothing at all. She could have been a feather for all I would have noticed. My parents had made us study the woods behind our house. Caly, Ceb, and I weren’t allowed to go anywhere until we knew it like the backs of our hands. Those soldiers had no chance of catching us. I ran until it was dark, and even then, I kept running. We only stopped to take care of the baby, and then we were off again. Then it had gotten really dark, and I couldn’t see anything in front of me. The trees were too thick for the moon to shine through. The baby had fallen asleep, and I could still hear Kinsley whimpering in my ear. I could tell she was exhausted, but not once did her grip slacken.

“It was hours before my adrenaline wore off completely. The fear had been sending it through my body regularly throughout the night. Then it hit me all at once and I remember, just falling to my knees. I barely had time to hand the baby to Kinsley before I passed out. We’ve been running ever since.”

“I am so sorry,” Anacostia told her. Scylla looked her in the eyes for the first time since she started her story.

“I was twelve, Kinsley was five, and all of a sudden we were orphans.” Scylla’s voice cracked. “Our little sister was never going to get to know her parents, or her amazing older sister and brother, or her twin. Now you tell me, Anacostia. How is that okay?”

“It’s not,” Anacostia told her. “That shouldn’t have happened I’m so sorry.”

“The Spree was a way for me to channel my anger,” Scylla said. “It was a way for me to fight back.”

“Where are your sisters now?” Anacostia asked.

“They’re somewhere safe,” Scylla told her. “And if they followed the plan, the so is Raelle and her unit.”

“Can you tell me where I can find them?” Anacostia straightened; this was an opportunity she couldn’t pass up. Her shoulders dropped as Scylla shook her head.

“I won’t tell you where they are,” Scylla said. “But you can get a message to them.”

“How?”

“Every day at four,” Scylla started, “try to link with their Knower, Tally. You’ll be able to get a message to her and vice versa. It won’t always work, but if you do it every day, eventually it will.”

“Why won’t it work every day?” Anacostia furrowed her brow. She had never not been able to link with a Knower. They were the easiest type of witch to link with.

“Bad reception.” There was a knock on the door of the cell and Anacostia jumped to her feet. She pulled Scylla to her feet as well then she moved to the chains and raised Scylla off of the ground again.

“Sorry,” Anacostia said at her wince. “That was Isadora, we’re out of time, the guards are on their way back.”

“It’s okay,” Scylla said weakly. She missed the floor. “I understand.”

“I’m going to get you out of this Ramshorn,” Anacostia assured her. “I’ll find a way I promise.”

The door opened and Anacostia made her exit.

As she was leaving she heard Scylla call, “No you won’t.”

She felt sick.

“How did it go?” Isadora asked as they made their way to her office.

“She talked to me,” Anacostia said. “I think we’ll be able to flip her; I just don’t like what I have to do next.”

“What do you mean?” Isadora held the door to her office open for Anacostia.

“Alder is suspicious of me, after Scylla’s last breakout. If I’m going to be able to do what I have to do, then I need her to trust me. That means giving her something on Scylla.” Anacostia felt her heart sink. She had to sit down, or she really was going to throw up. The thought of doing what she’s about to do makes her feel physically ill.

“Okay, but why is that a bad thing?”

“Alder’s been using the Seed of Illusion to torture her.” Anacostia runs a shaking hand over her hair. “When Alder knows what I’m about to tell her, I think it might break Scylla beyond the point of repair.”

“She’s stronger than you give her credit for,” Isadora tried to reassure her.

“I know,” Anacostia responded. “Alder needs something, and this is all I have. I’m worried it’ll destroy her.”

“Then we need to move fast.” Isadora said. “You tell her what you know, you gain her trust, and we move as fast as we can to break Scylla out. Once she’s out she can help us bring down the Spree. I know, you’re worried, but you need to think about the big picture here.”

“But how does this make me any better than Alder?” Anacostia looked at Isadora desperately.

“You’re intentions are pure. Alder’s are not. In the end, that is what matters. Scylla will understand. She’ll make it through.”

“I pray to the goddess, you’re right.”

* * *

The Bellweather unit had been given a small cabin on the edge of town. The Tarim had a larger cabin down by the lake. Khalida had been excited about that. They had settled into their cabin quite nicely. There had only been one bedroom, but it had been set up with bunkbeds so, they acclimated to the space easily.

“It’ll be just like basic,” Tally had said as she climbed onto the top bunk.

Their kitchen was well stocked, Raelle had reveled in the ability to eat junk food again. She had devoured seven bags of potato chips on their first night.

“The civs that live here, take turns making supply runs every week,” Kinsley had told them. “They say they work for a soup kitchen, and no one asks after that.”

“How can you afford all of this?” Abigail had asked. “It’s got to be expensive to feed this whole place every week.”

“It’s not that bad,” Kinsley had said with a shrug. “We have some cows that one of the families here take care of. Their daughter delivers the fresh milk every day. And Chris’ family has a chicken farm so we all get fresh eggs. There’s this lovely family, the Legrand’s, about a mile north that has a farm, they bring their fresh produce into town every few days. Every one has a system set up for trade.”

“But where do you get the money for all the other things you need?” Tally had asked curiously.

Kinsley laughed and responded with, “We rob a bank or two here and there.”

They still didn’t know if she was joking or not.

Raelle was sitting at the kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal when Tally stumbles her way out of the bedroom, Abigail close behind.

“Mornin’,” Tally mumbled.

“There’s fresh milk in the fridge,” Raelle pointed behind her with her spoon. “Chris brought over some eggs, and Camille Legrand brought us some fruits and veggies.” She gestured to a basket on the counter behind her.

“I love it here,” Tally said as she took a huge bite out of an apple.

Abigail shook her head as she opened the fridge and grabbed the eggs. “This place is to good to be true,” she said sternly. The girls rolled their eyes, they had heard this before. “Remember, Scylla’s hands are all over this place, we need to stay vigilant.”

“Can you just accept that Scylla did something good?” Raelle snapped.

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Abigail placated her. “I’m saying that if they find out we’re the ones who got her captured, not once-” she glanced at Tally “-but twice. This place could turn on us very quickly.”

Raelle hadn’t thought of that. She pushed her bowl away from her as the urge to vomit made it’s way up her throat. She nodded her understanding to Abigail who made her way to the stove.

“I’m making eggs,” she announced. “Do you guys want any?”

“Yes, please,” Tally answered around a mouthful of apple. “Thank you.”

“I’m okay, thanks.” Raelle stood and moved back towards the room to get dressed. “Don’t forget, Kinsley wants to take us up the mountain in an hour, so make it quick. I know how long it takes you High Atlantics to get ready.”

Raelle caught the orange before it could hit her face, and she ducked into the bedroom laughing to herself.

They were making their way through the town square. All around them people were bustling about. Ahead of them they saw Adil and Khalida walking together. They ran to catch up. Khalida offered them a rushed ‘hello’, before she took off towards another group of kids.

“She looks happy,” Abigail said.

Adil beamed at her. “This is the first time since she was born that she isn’t burdened by the future. She’s just a normal kid right now. I’ve never seen her like this. She’s so happy. She get’s to play with other kids.” He looked toward his sister. “She’s actually playing, she’s never done that before.”

“I’m glad you’re happy here.” Abigail bumped their shoulders together and Adil gave her hand a squeeze as he shot her a bright smile.

“So what are you up to today?” Tally asked him.

“Kinsley offered to take us up the mountain, but Khalida didn’t want to go. So we are going stay here and see what we can find. I think I might look for a job.” He laughed. “I’ve never had one of those before.”

The girls offered him a smile and he made his goodbyes, telling Abigail he’d see her later. Tally wiggled her eyebrows at Abigail and she received a shove in return. They all laughed as they passed by a cabin whose yard was overrun with chickens.

“I guess this is where Chris lives, huh?” Raelle asked.

There was a crash behind them and all three spun around to see a young girl lying in the ground, clutching her hand to her chest. Her bike was one the ground behind her. An empty crate was turned onto its side having fallen off the back of the bike.

Raelle recognized her as the Legrand girl. She was crying as she clutched at her arm. The girls rushed to her side and started trying to comfort her. They could see that her wrist was broken. It bent at an odd angle.

Kinsley seemed to appear out of thin air.

“ _Shit_!” Abigail jumped. “Where the fu-”

“Camille, est-ce que tout va bien?” Kinsley asked if she was okay. Raelle’s eyebrows shot towards her hairline at the use of French. “Pouvez-vous bouger vos doigts?”

“Non,” Camille cried, “non.”

Kinsley looked over her shoulder at one of the bystanders. “Go get Dr. O’Keefe. Tell him she broke her wrist.” The guy nodded and then took off running.

“I can set it,” Raelle said, wanting to help. “I used to do it all the time in the Cession, some people didn’t trust magic, but they still needed help. I can help please. It’ll help ease the pain.”

Kinsley relayed the information to Camille. The girl looked unsure. Kinsley said something else to her and she finally nodded her head in agreement.

“D’accord,” Camille said. She closed her eyes and braced for the pain.

Raelle looked at Abigail and Tally, they moved to hold the girl still without having to be asked. “Now,” Raelle began, “this is going to hurt really bad for a second then it’ll feel a lot better.” She waited until Kinsley was done translating before she continued. One hand grabbed the girl’s upper arm, and the other grabbed her hand. She gave it a quick yank. Camille cried out in pain then sighed in relief.

“Merci,” she said

“De rien,” Raelle responded.

Before they could do anything else, a man with a hefty Irish accent descended upon them. There was a flurry of movement as he asked Camille questions in French, and the Bellweather unit and Kinsley were forced to move backwards.

“Will she be alright?” Tally asked in concern as she watched Dr. O’Keefe carry her away.

“Yeah,” Kinsley responded. “O’Keefe is a good doctor. He and his family got here around the same time as Camille’s. They had been in the same Dodger group when Ashlyn found them.”

“Who’s Ashlyn?” Abigail asked.

“She’s the one who runs this place when Scylla isn’t here. She was a scout; she’d find people who needed a safe place and she’d send them here.” Kinsley nodded her head to her right and started walking, the Bellweather unit close behind. “She took over once Scylla left and she’s been in charge for about a little over a year now. She’s done really well. You’ll meet her in a minute, she’s going to drop Duke off before we go.”

“Where is Duke?” Raelle asked curiously.

“Ah, she had school this morning,” Kinsley told them. “She usually spends half the day in school and half the day up top, except on weekends. We’re more flexible there.”

She offered them all a friendly smile. It looked so different from Scylla’s, but Raelle recognized the same sincerity behind it.

“You have a school?” Abigail asked.

“Yeah,” Kinsley said. “One of the civs was a middle school teacher before she came here. She got here right before Scylla left, she helped her set it up. Scylla can do many things, but building is not one of them. You’ll know the school when you see it,” Kinsley giggled. “It’s the lopsided building by the woods.”

The thought of Scylla realizing she had messed up when she had finished, made Raelle smile. When they had told Kinsley what had happened with Scylla, she had taken it surprisingly well. She had only nodded and pursed her lips in understanding. She had looked visibly upset, but she didn’t act like it.

“We always knew something like that could happen,” she had said. “We hoped it never would, but we knew. She told us when she left that it could happen.”

They sat in amiable silence as they waited for the rest of their group to show up. A few more people showed up, and leaned against the trees, sat on the ground, paced back and forth, laughed with their friends. It was peaceful. Raelle took a deep breath and sighed contentedly.

Tally was basking in the sun and Abigail was engaged in a lively conversation with Jade. Kinsley was making her rounds, talking to everyone. They loved her so much it was almost palpable. It just rolled off all of them in waves as they interacted with her.

“Kinsley,” they heard a small voice call excitedly. Duke was holding onto the harness of a dog who was walking alongside her. “Kinsley!”

“Over here bubba,” Kinsley called. Duke’s dog started towards her, Duke following along happily. A woman Raelle hadn’t seen yet trailed close behind her.

Duke stopped a few feet away from Kinsley and stood there waiting. “Where?”

“Come one Dukey,” the woman called. “You know better, you need to practice.”

Duke groaned. Then she started clicking. She turned her head from one side to another. She continued clicking as she zeroed in on her sister. Once she was sure, she let go of the dog and launched herself at Kinsley.

“Hey, bubba, how was school?” Kinsley asked.

“Boring,” Duke responded. “Today was math. I hate math.”

“If you look on the bright side, tomorrow is science,” Kinsley tried. “You love science.”

Duke made a farting noise with her mouth and collapsed into giggles.

“What is that supposed to mean little miss?” the woman asked. Duke just repeated the action and laughed again. “Whatever.”

“Thanks for bringing her aunt Ashlyn,” Kinsley thanked the woman and gave her a hug. “I really appreciate it.

“No problem sweetie,” Ashlyn said. When she went to hug the girl back, Raelle noticed that she was wearing a prosthetic arm. Ashlyn noticed her looking and offered her a smile. “I lost it in Kandahar eight years ago.”

“I’m sorry,” Raelle told her.

“It’s okay,” Ashlyn said. “I’m used to it.” She turned to Kinsley and Duke. “I’ll see ya ladies later, I’ve got work to do. Let me know if you hear anything.”

“Will do.” Kinsley saluted her aunt as she walked away, taking the dog with her.

“You’re not bringing your dog?” Abigail asked.

“Susan gets motion sickness.” Kinsley nodded over her shoulder, and for the first time the caught sight of a fleet of golf carts behind the line of trees.

“She threw up all over Noah’s shoes last time we took her on the carts,” Duke told them excitedly. She was bouncing up and down as she laughed. “It was funny.”

“Hey,” Noah cried in indignation. “Those were my favorite shoes.”

His words make Duke cackle diabolically. “It was all a part of our plan,” she called to him.

“Our plan?” he asked. He gasped in mock hurt when Kinsley and Duke high-five. “But that was years ago, how did I not spot your evil genius before now? You were five.”

“Yes,” Kinsley said. “But Scylla wasn’t. She’s the one who drove.”

“The betrayal,” Noah exclaimed to the sky. “The agony!”

His antics make both Kinsley and Duke laugh hysterically. It was an odd sight for the Bellweather unit, because up until this point, they hadn’t seen Kinsley act like the child she is. It was so easy to forget that she was only twelve when she was ordering people twice her age around. It was nice.

They were interrupted by the sound of a small horn beeping at them. Everyone dispensed themselves evenly between the golf carts. It all happened very smoothly except for a minor hiccup when Kinsley tried convincing Jade to let her drive.

“I don’t think so short stack,” Jade laughed, dangling the keys out of her reach. “You know what your sister said, if she’s not here, you gotta wait until you’re fourteen, Chica. Sorry.”

Kinsley fake pouted and kicked at the ground. “Kinsley,” Duke called. “You can sit with me!”

Kinsley cheered and sat next to her sister, grabbing her hand.

“That shit’s adorable.” Jade said.

“How did you end up here?” Raelle asked her.

“My mom served in the military, until she had my sister.” Jade told them. “My sister was born deaf, and the military tends frown upon disabilities of any kind. They’re considered to be difficult. My mom found out about all the “accidents” disabled witches had their first month of basic. And she and my dad ran. We were with a group of Dodgers in Arizona when Ashlyn found us. She told us about this place, told us it was safe. We’ve been her for almost two years now.”

“I’m sorry,” Abigail felt compelled to say.

“Why?” Jade scoffs. “I spent over fourteen years of my life on the run before we found this place. Now, I get to decide my future. This is the closest thing to freedom our people can get.”

They spent the rest of the ride in silence, listening to the excited chatter coming from the two girls siting on the back of the cart. The closer they got the more bouncy they became.

It was an hour long drive up the mountain, they got there around twenty minutes before two.

Kinsley and Duke leapt off the back of the golf cart and took off running. Raelle and Abigail felt their magic again. They all sang a small seed and watched as dirt and fallen leaves swirled in the air before them. They were about to start wandering about to get a look around when the Ramshorn sisters appeared in front of them.

“Mother fu- trucker!” Abigail yelped, clutching at her chest. These damn kids.

They stood there for a second, and their heads and eyes moved in unison as they looked at the three girls. Raelle was just starting to feel uncomfortable when the two girls stepped forward and they both looked at Raelle.

“You’re pretty,” Duke said. Then they turned their heads toward Tally, “I like your hair.” They looked up at Abigail next, “You’re really tall.”

They were stunned into silence.

“I’m sorry what?” Raelle asked. “I thought-”

“But, you’re-” Tally started.

Abigail didn’t even try talking, she just stood there wallowing in her complete and utter confusion.

The two girls saw the looks on their faces and Duke started to giggle.

“Sorry,” Kinsley said as they looked between the women of the Bellweather unit. “We’re linked. She’s seeing everything that I am and I’m seeing everything that she is. She wanted to see what you all looked like.”

Raelle looked Duke in the eyes and said, “Well? What’s the general consensus Duke? I mean, I know I’m the prettiest, but who’s the second prettiest?”

Duke giggled and gestured for Raelle to move closer. Raelle bent down and placed her ear in front of Duke’s mouth. Duke started stage whispering, “Abigail’s funny and I like Tally’s hair. I’ve never seen hair that color before. I like your braids.”

“Thank you,” Raelle said.

“I like your braids.” Tally looked Duke in the eye as well.

“Me too,” Abigail said. She followed their lead and made eye contact with the girl.

The two girls looked down at the ground bashfully. Duke started to scuff her feet against the ground. She looked up at Tally, “Can I braid your hair?”

“Of course,” Tally exclaimed. “I’d love that.”

They all sat down but before the can do anything Tally yelped and leapt back onto her feet.

“Yes,” she said. “I can hear you.”

Raelle and Abigail also rose to their feet as well. They followed her as she moved away from the group. Kinsley and Duke watched them leave with a tilt of their heads.

“I can’t,” Tally said. “I don’t know where we are, but we’re safe.” There was a pause as Tally listened to who was on the other side. “I’ll tell her. Do you have a plan for future contact?” She listened again. “Understood, sergeant.”

“What was that?” Abigail asked her once she turned back to the group.

“That was Sergeant Quartermaine,” Tally said. “She said that Scylla told her how to get in contact with us.”

“Is Scylla okay?” Raelle asked, she felt worry creep up the back of her spine. “What did Anacostia say?”

“She said that Scylla was in rough shape but she’s alive,” Tally reassured her. “She’s working on a plan to get her out again. She told me she’ll make contact in a week and that we should stay put until then.”

“Did she say anything else?” Raelle asked, desperate for news.

“No, that was it,” Tally said. “I swear.”

“We need to tell her sisters,” Abigail said. They turned to deliver the news to the girls and found them standing behind them.

“There’s no need,” Kinsley said and they tilted their heads to look at each girl.

“We already know,” Duke told them. The two sisters raised their palms towards the girls. The saw identical, angry red, ‘B’s on them.

Raelle immediately looked down and found an ‘S’. She would have collapsed to her knees if Abigail hadn’t caught her. She hadn’t realized how much the absence of a connection had weighed on her. Now that she was back in the world of magic, she could feel Scylla again. She hoped that this meant that Scylla could feel her again too.

“They’re looking for a way to break your sister out,” Tally told them.

Kinsley and Duke smiled sadly at the group. “I wish that made me happier. But, no, offense. I don’t have a lot of faith in your military.”

“That’s understandable,” Raelle said. “Scylla told me what happened to your parents, I get how that could make you mistrust the military.”

“They’re not all bad people,” Abigail tried to reassure Kinsley.

There was a fire in their eyes as they stared at the women in front of them.

“You understand, _nothing_ ,” Kinsley growled. The air around them shifted. All of the happiness they had felt when they had first arrived at the mountain top, disappeared. Raelle, Tally, and Abigail were filled with fear. The others who had come up with them started to make their way offer. Noah and Jade looked like they were ready to intervene if they had to. “If you love your army so damn much, why don’t you just go back and see how they treat a group of Dodgers such as yourselves. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have other things to be doing.”

Duke and Kinsley threw them one last glare before they stalked away.

“That went well,” Abigail said, Tally shook her head at the girl’s words.

Raelle scoffed in disbelief and ran a hand through her hair. “You could say that again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That one part was really hard to write, I had to take a few breaks and rewrite it a few times. I have it in there, because I plan on using it to really push Scylla past her breaking point.  
> Please comment, I'd like you're feedback!  
> p.s. shit's about to get so much worse for Scylla before it gets better. Au revoir.


	5. My Fault

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scylla's approaching her breaking point. Tally receives her orders,

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: This Chapter depicts the torture and death of children.  
> Please Comment! The feedback really helps!  
> I don't edit before I post, otherwise it'll never get posted. I'd keep finding things to change.

“Sergeant, I was just starting to forget what you looked like. I’m so glad you’re here, I was starting to miss all the fun we had,” Scylla said, as Anacostia walked into her cell. It had been a few days since she had last seen the woman. “I’d offer you some refreshments, but the lemonade here is a bit disappointing.”

Anacostia said nothing as she moved to stand against the wall.

“What is this?” Scylla asked. She turned her head to look at Anacostia, but the woman was avoiding eye contact. “What’s going on?”

Anacostia couldn’t meet her eyes.

“What’s going on, Ramshorn,” General Alder said as she strode into the room, “is I finally have what it takes to break you.”

“I mean you can try,” Scylla said. “But can you really break someone who is already broken?” Silence follows her question. “Sorry, was that joke too dark for you? How about this one, you torture me, I give Petra access to my memories of the day I kicked your ass. And what else happened that day? I can’t really rem- oh, yeah! You killed your own soldiers for the chance to kill the Bellweather unit.”

Alder didn’t look worried. “An excellent bargaining chip. I wonder, why haven’t you used it yet?”

“Maybe, I like my sessions with Petra.” Scylla pouted. “I mean, I have been a _very_ bad girl.”

“Or,” Alder started, “you know that they won’t believe you. Memories can be… altered. And who will they believe, Sarah Alder, General of the United States Army, or Scylla Ramshorn, member of the Spree, an anarchist group that will do anything to destabilize the military.” Scylla’s antagonizing smirk disappeared. “You. Have. Nothing.”

“Then why am I still here? You’ve gotten the revenge you said you wanted. I’ve more than suffered for what I did to you. So why am I still alive?” Scylla asked. “We’ve been at this for weeks and according to you, ‘I have nothing’. So just kill me.”

“Oh, no.” Alder shook her head and started to pace in front of Scylla. “You see, there is something in your mind that is protected by ancient magic. Many things in your mind actually. The magic that you used trying to kill me precedes the Roman Empire and it died long before I was born. Or so I thought. I’ve tried to remember the seed you used, but it doesn’t work. When I try to remember how it sounded, all I hear is silence. It’s protected. That magic is incredibly powerful and you’re going to tell me how to harness it.”

“That kind of power, in your hands?” Scylla’s eyebrows shot up and she scoffed at Alder in amusement. “Witches wouldn’t be slaves to the civs, they’d be slaves to you. _All_ witches. I would rather die.”

“You seem to have painted me as a world conquering villain in your story,” Alder said.

“Aren’t you though?” Scylla refuted. “You were willing to kill your own soldiers to maintain your power. You controlled the president. You were so desperate to keep your throne you were willing to cast aside good women. The Tarim knew better to than to trust you with their songs. They would rather go extinct than risk you learning their secrets.”

“We face new and old enemies every day. I have tried my best to prepare us, but it is not enough. If we want to survive the war to come, you must allow me access to the ancient magic. I have no desire to conquer the masses,” Alder told her. “I have the same desire as you; to finally release my people from the shackles of society. ”

“Shackles, you put us in,” Scylla exclaimed, with an exasperated huff. “All because you were too scared to die. You say you did it for the good of all witches, to ensure our safety. Tell me how sending us to die in Civilian wars, ensures our safety. What you want is to continue to thrive while everyone else dies alone and scared in some foreign country. We don’t want the same things, so save your shit.”

“Don’t we?” Alder asked. “We both want freedom for witches. We just have different ways of trying to achieve it. Join me, and this could all be over.”

“You’re right,” Scylla conceded. “We do have different ways of going about it. I’m willing to kill civs while you fight to protect civs, because they’re the ones who keep you in power. And I fight to protect witches, while you’re willing to kill them, all because they can take your power away. If they knew the truth, they would.”

“Sacrifices must be made if we are going to achieve our end goal,” Alder said.

“I agree,” Scylla responded. “I just think that the deaths should be those of the oppressors, not the oppressed. So I will _never_ join you, and I will never tell you what you want to know. So you might as well kill me.”

“Oh, it won’t be you I kill. You see, you may have protected a lot of things in your mind, but not everything. I will admit, the things without ancient protection still had extraordinarily strong barriers. But once I knew what I was looking for,” Alder nodded to Anacostia as her smile turned predatory. Scylla’s eyes snapped to Anacostia in horror, but the woman still wouldn’t meet her eyes. “Those barriers could do little to stop me.” She looked Scylla in the eyes as she said, “You’ll tell me what you know, whether you mean to or not.”

The door clanged open and Scylla struggled to open her eyes. Sleep addled her brain as she blinked against the lights shining in her cell. Someone was talking to her, but it was garbled as though she was underwater. She couldn’t clear her head. She remembered flashes of what had happened before everything turned black. A guard bringing her lunch, someone force feeding her some kind of slop, spitting it in the guards face, and then a fist.

Her head lolled from side to side as she tried to focus on what was happening around her. Blobs moved around in front of her and she fought the urge to close her eyes again. Whoever it was started unbinding her wrists. They lifted Scylla’s head as it rolled back as another pair of hands freed her ankles.

She felt a certain kind of warmth radiating from the hands holding her face. The fogginess that shrouded her mind lifted and with it her vision cleared. Her heart clenched as she took in the sight of Raelle and Abigail.

“What are you doing here? You’re not supposed to be here. You’re supposed to be safe,” Scylla slurred as she tried to raise her hands to Raelle’s face but they were too heavy.

“We’ll explain later,” Raelle told her. “We don’t have time; we have to go.”

“Can you walk?” Abigail asked her.

“I don’t think so,” Scylla said.

Abigail nodded and moved to lift Scylla into her arms. Raelle eyed them both briefly before she moved to lead them out of the cell. Tally met them in the hallway.

“It’s all clear,” she told them. “The guards are in the middle of rotation. It’s supposed to be Scylla’s lunch time so they think that there’s a guard in there with her now.”

“Then let’s go,” Abigail said.

Together the four of them made their way out of the Necro Building. They had to follow Tally’s instructions exactly. They stopped when she said stop and the ran when she said run. Every now and then Raelle would catch Scylla’s eye, checking to make sure she was okay. Each time she received a tired nod from Scylla.

When they burst into the woods, Scylla had to squeeze her eyes shut against the light. Even under the canopy of the trees, the light was too much for her to handle. She could feel Abigail running, she could hear them panting for breath as they ran, and she could feel herself getting sick.

“Stop,” Scylla told Abigail. “Stop.”

“We can’t,” she responded.

“I’m going to be sick.”

“Then be sick,” Abigail said.

Scylla bent her head over and threw up all over the ground and Abigail. Every time she felt like she was done, she’d throw up again. She couldn’t help it, she cried. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m sorry.

“It’s okay,” Raelle told her. She made brief eye contact with Raelle before she had to shut her eyes against the sun again. She caught a glimpse of a jeep before everything went dark.

When she woke up she could feel the jeep moving beneath her. She could tell she was laying down and she pushed herself up into a sitting position. Looking around she realized that she wasn’t in the jeep, but a more nondescript car. The windows were tinted and the interior looked like it had seen better days. She looked around and saw Raelle, Abigail, and Tally sat on the bench seat in the front of the car. She groaned at the stiffness in her neck, gaining the attention of Raelle and Tally.

“Where are we?” she asked, rubbing her neck.

“The Cession,” Tally told her. “We’re on our way to a Dodger safehouse.”

“There’s something you need to know,” Raelle started as she turned to face Scylla. “They found the compound, everyone had to run.” Her words stole the breath from Scylla’s lungs. “Your sisters are safe, I promise. We’re going to meet them now, we’re almost there.”

Scylla swallowed the questions she felt pushing their way up her throat. She offered Raelle a nod of appreciation that was returned. Scylla took stock of her body. She still ached in many places but the pain in her back and in her head had eased. She looked at Raelle again and said, “Thank you.”

“Of course,” she said.

“All of you,” Scylla said looking at the other two girls as well. “Thank you for coming to get me.”

Tally nodded and Abigail said, “Don’t mention it.”

“What did they do to you?” Tally asked. Abigail and Raelle both shot her looks of disapproval. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, really.” Scylla ran a hand through her hair. “They thought you guys were Spree, so they tortured me to get information on you. They started with magical torture, and when that didn’t work, they moved on to physical torture. Whips, fingernails, that sort of thing. That was my main form of torture. And then there was General Alder.”

“What did she do?” Raelle asked.

“She’d give me these visions. Illusions of possibilities. She’d give me visions of you rescuing me. Then I’d wake up in my cell, and none of it was real. But it had _felt_ real. That _hope_ was real. And recently, she’s been showing me the day my parents died. Every time, everything had felt so _real_.”

“The best way to break someone is to make them lose their grip on reality,” Abigail said, looking at Scylla in the rearview mirror.

“Yeah,” Scylla responded. “That was their goal.”

The rode in silence for a few more minutes before Abigail allowed the car to slow. Scylla lost track of the amount of turns they made. It was another thirty minutes before they pulled up to a rundown house at the end of a cul-de-sac. It was early in the morning, the sun hadn’t yet risen, and everything was still around them.

Tally and Abigail opened their doors and moved to get out of the car. Raelle moved to follow, but she stopped when she saw that Scylla hadn’t moved. “What’s wrong?”

“I haven’t seen them in over a year,” Scylla said, staring at the house as Abigail and Tally went inside with a glance back at the car. “What if they hate me for leaving? What if they hate me when they find out what I’ve done?”

“They are so excited to see you Scylla, you have no idea. They’ve been talking about it non-stop. Especially the little one.”

“Duke?” Scylla asked. “She was six when I left. I bet she’s gotten so big.”

“She’s amazing.” Raelle smiled. “Her and-”

“Kinsley,” Scylla breathed. Then a realization hit her. “Did you leave them here alone?”

“No,” Raelle responded. “We left them with a blonde lady she said she was your-”

“My Aunt’s here?”

“Yes, your aunt Ashlyn is here.” Raelle offered her yet another smile. “I’m sure they’d all really love to see you. Let’s head inside.”

“Okay.” Scylla opens her door and steps out of the car.

She shoved her hands in her pockets as she neared the door of the house. She looked over at Raelle again looking for comfort, which she gladly offered. Scylla took a deep breath and followed Raelle inside.

Before she could even move Raelle was tackled to the ground in front of her and Scylla was being pulled further into the house. Her arms were wrenched behind her back and they placed a collar on her as they forced her into a kitchen. What she found there made her scream bloody murder.

When she saw her sisters kneeling in front of General Alder, Scylla started thrash against her captors. She kicked and jumped and pushed and pulled, but nothing worked. All the while she was begging Alder to let them go.

“ _No!_ ” she cried desperately. She watched Duke and Kinsley cry as the tried to free themselves. “No. Please. God no!”

“Now,” Alder said. “Tell me what I want to know. Or watch your sisters suffer the consequences.”

“I can’t,” Scylla told her. She looked at her sisters and watched as the sobbed. She could see the fear in their eyes.

“Just tell her Scylla,” Raelle screamed, the fear in her voice was sharp and clear.

“I can’t,” Scylla repeated. “Please don’t hurt them.”

“Lieutenant Fieldstone.” Alder looked to a woman behind Scylla. “Seed twenty one, please.”

Scylla screamed. Her throat strained with the noise. She fought the women holding her with everything that she had but it just wasn’t enough. “ _Please!_ ” She begged and screamed and pleaded but they ignored her.

The woman sang her seed, and Kinsley fell forward and started to writhe on the ground. Scylla continued to try and free herself, but nothing worked. She felt her shoulder dislocate, but that was nothing compared to watching her sister get tortured. Duke screamed and struggled against her bonds too, trying to reach her sister.

“Tell me,” Alder demanded. She had to yell to be heard over the screaming.

“I don’t know,” Scylla wept. “Please I don’t know. I can’t tell you what I don’t know, just stop.”

“I don’t believe you,” Alder told her.

Kinsley continued to writhe on the floor. Her eyes were closed in pain. Her hands were curled into claws as her arms clenched to her chest. Her head repeatedly slammed against the floor as she screamed. And screamed. And screamed.

And then there was silence.

“ _NO!_ ” Scylla sobbed and strained to reach her sister. If she could just reach her she could make this alright. “ _Kinsley! Please!_ ”

Duke wept where she knelt. She could do nothing but stare at her big sister’s motionless body. Scylla stared at Kinsley’s chest, willing it to move, willing for Kinsley to breathe. But nothing happened. She felt something shatter inside of her as she stared at the body of her twelve year old sister.

“Tell me.” Alder pointed to Duke. “Or she’s next.”

“I don’t know,” Scylla screamed. “Please, I don’t know. Someone had to teach me, I can’t remember what she did, it’s protected. I didn’t even know the woman’s name. Please, don’t hurt her.”

“Lieutenant,” Alder said.

“Duke,” Scylla said, “look at me.”

Duke looked at her sister, but her eyes were clouded with grief and fear.

“It’s going to be okay,” Scylla told her, her voice cracking as her throat closed up. “It’s all going to be okay, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry. Please forgive me, I’m sorry.”

The gag over her sister’s mouth prevented her from responding.

And then she was on the floor, her body convulsing with pain.

All Scylla wanted was to reach out and hold her hand. Let her know that she was there with her. That they’d all be together soon. Unlike Kinsley, Duke’s eyes didn’t close. Scylla could see the pain and fear in her eyes as her body started to turn against her. She screamed in agony. And Scylla wept.

“Tell me.”

“I don’t know,” Scylla whimpered. “Please, please, I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know.”

Duke barely lasted two minutes and then she was gone. Her body as still as her sister’s. They finally let Scylla go and she draped herself over her sister’s bodies. She wept. Her body wilted with anguish. She pulled them both into her lap and pressed their faces to her neck. She rocked them as she wailed. Her little sisters were dead and it was her fault. They were gone. And it was her fault.

_My fault._

_My fault._

_My fault._

_My fault._

“Kill the others,” Alder said. Scylla eye’s shot to Raelle’s. She watched as a soldier slit her throat.

_My fault._

Everything went black.

Scylla was in her cell again. Alder stood in front of her, watching as she wept.

“It wasn’t real,” Scylla was whispering to herself. Her voice sounded fragile and raw. “It wasn’t real,” she repeated.

“Let’s try that again shall we?” Alder asked. “maybe the second time is the charm.”

“General,” Anacostia stepped forward. “Maybe she’s had enough.”

“No,” Alder said. “I don’t think she has.” She looked back at Anacostia. Her face serious. “I don’t enjoy this Anacostia, but the ancient magical knowledge she possesses could save our people from the Camarilla and the Spree. I have to find out what she knows.”

Anacostia spared a broken Scylla one last glance before she nodded her understanding and backed away to her corner.

Kinsley. Duke. _My fault. My fault._ Raelle. _My fault._

“It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real.”

Kinsley. Duke. _My fault. My fault._ Raelle. _My fault._

“It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real.”

Kinsley. Duke. _My fault. My fault._ Raelle. _My fault._

“It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real.”

Scylla had been bearing this new method of torture for a long time. The only reasons she still held on to even the slightest amount of her sanity, was that they never got Duke right. And she always woke up. It was like she was being forced to live her worst nightmare over and over again. Normally, nightmares were something that she could deal with. But she didn’t know how many more times she could watch her sisters be killed.

Scylla thought she had been enduring Alder's new form of torture for weeks now. But it still wasn’t working. Allowing her to remember the visions she had before this one was a nice touch. It made everything else so much more believable. Yet, she still hadn’t got what she wanted. So, Kinsley and Duke’s deaths became longer and more agonizing. Scylla could feel herself slipping away. Alder was desperate for what she knows, but she had no way of telling her. She couldn’t. So, she had to keep watching her sisters die.

She felt as though watching Caly, Ceb, the baby, and her parents die had been easier than this. At least then it wasn’t her fault. Now, when her sisters died in this hell, it was her fault.

It was her fault. It was her fault.

She killed them.

It wasn’t working the way Alder needed it to. So she tried a new tactic. She tried to trick Scylla into using the seed in her visions. She’d manipulate the vision so that Scylla could break free and fight back. She’d fight off all of her attackers, saving Alder for last. It was almost too easy. She’d grab a knife off the counter and stab Alder in the heart.

She snapped her neck.

She slit her throat.

She beat her to death.

She gutted her.

But not once, did she use the Ancient magic. She’d killed Alder in many different and violent ways, but she never used the damn seed. So, Alder tried something else.

She waited until after the sisters were dead and tried to provoke her into using the seed, but she had always been too distraught afterwards. Her grief would hold her back. She’d give up every time. She’d asked to be killed. Every time. Alder would give her an ultimatum. “Tell me what you know, and I will happily give you your wish.”

Every time, Scylla found a way to kill herself instead.

After every vision, Scylla seemed to be a little more broken than the time before. But it still wasn’t broken enough to reveal her secrets. Even the physical torture Bellweather was inflicting had little to no effect anymore. The girl was starting to shut down, and if Alder didn’t get the information before that happened she knew she would never get it. She’d have to get more creative with her visions. If she could just find the right sequence of events.

* * *

“General Bellweather,” Anacostia greeted as she strode to stand in front of the other woman. “Thank you for seeing me.”

“Of course,” Petra responded. “What can I do for you?”

“Alder’s been lying to you,” Anacostia got straight to the point.

“How, so?” Petra gestured to the chair on the other side of her desk and Anacostia took a seat.

“The Spree agent that we have in custody.”

“What about her?” Petra inquired.

“I walked through her memories,” Anacostia told her. “I saw what really happened on the Tarim rescue mission.”

“And?” Petra leaned forward. If what Anacostia saw was enough to turn her against Alder, then it must be good.

“Alder wanted to use that mission to kill your daughters.” Anacostia looked her in the eye. “And if that hadn’t succeeded, which it didn’t, they were to be framed as members of the Spree. The only reason they escaped is because Ramshorn fought Alder off long enough for them to get away undetected.”

“Okay, so what do you want me to-”

“There’s more,” Anacostia interrupted. “I think that we could turn her, use her as a spy against the Spree.”

“And why do you think that?”

“Because I let her go on the night that she escaped-” Anacostia ignored the general’s astonished _‘what’_ , “-and instead of saving herself, she chose to save your daughter and her unit, all with the knowledge that she could be killed or captured again.”

Petra was silent for a moment as she decided what to do. Anacostia had just admitted to being a traitor. But in committing that act she had saved her daughter’s life.

“We’ve been torturing her for months,” Petra stated, looking Anacostia in the eye. “How could we possibly get her on our side?”

“We give her what she wants,” Anacostia said simply.

“And what is that exactly?”

“Alder out of power and a chance to end the conscription,” Anacostia said. “The right way, with no violence.”

“And how do you plan on giving her that?” Petra was looking at Anacostia as though she had grown a second head. There was no way they’d be able to end the conscription.

“A meeting with you.” Anacostia’s words are met with a scoff.

“What do you think a meeting with me will do?” Petra asked.

“When Alder is gone, you’re the next in line.” Anacostia raised her hands in an attempt to placate the general. “If Scylla feels as though we’ll let her be heard, then she’ll be more willing to help.”

“Alright, I’ll do it.” The general nodded. “How do you suggest we deal with General Alder?”

“I have evidence that General Alder puppeted the President,” Anacostia said.

“Well,” Petra said, waving her off. “I already knew that, but evidence will be good.”

“And she’s been using the Seed of Hallucination on Ramshorn.”

Petra gaped. “That magic has been outlawed by the Hague since its formation. The penalty for using that seed is execution.”

“I know,” Anacostia told her. “But if we play our cards right, we can catch her in the act. It would give us a reason to arrest her. Then we could put her on trial for her crimes.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Petra said. “How do we proceed?”

* * *

The Bellweather unit had been at Olympus for over a month now, and they had been settling in nicely. Abigail had gotten a job on the Guard. Twice a week she’d grab a bow and patrol the woods. Making sure they didn’t have any unwanted guests. Twice a week she’d take sentry duty. And twice a week she’d help settle disputes in town. She’d spend her day off lounging in the cabin with the girls, Adil, and Khalida. She loved it.

Tally had taken to helping out at the school. She loved working with the little kids. The only downside was that she’d have to be up at the crack of dawn every morning while the other girls got to sleep in. When she wasn’t helping at the school, she’d drive up to the top of the mountain, just in case there was an emergency, and Anacostia had to contact them. Raelle and Abigail would join her when they could.

And Raelle, she was helping build cabins for the Tarim. The man in charge was named Walter. He was a lovely old man who had been in construction for forty years. He had followed his family here, and according to him, he’s been building ever since. They were always adding new cabins. Raelle had a lot of splinters and hammered thumbs, but she actually found it all rather therapeutic.

Dr. O’Keefe had offered to let her work for him, and she happily helped out when he was overwhelmed, but she didn’t really like being cooped up inside all day. She was used to being outdoors and wandering around. She had developed the habit back in the Cession after her mom died. It was too painful to be at home where memories of her lingered in every nook and cranny.

She liked the work; it kept her mind off of things. It was back breaking somedays, but it was worth it. They were halfway through with the first cabin that they were building. It was going to be for the mom and her little girl. Walter had been telling her about how they had a stash of novelty beds for the kids who showed up in the town. He told her about how excited the girl got when Adil told her about it. She really liked Walter; he was a nice man who just wanted to good for others. Plus he loved to tell Raelle stories about his grandkids.

He had given Raelle the day off so she was sitting with Tally as they waited to leave for the top of the mountain.

“So you and Noah seem to be getting close,” Raelle said. She smiled at the blush that she saw creep across Tally’s cheeks. “How’s that going? Has he sent you a _drawing_ yet?”

“No.” Tally laughed and shook her head. “It’s not like that, he’s just a nice guy. His little sister and brother are both in school right now. He’s been helping their aunt and uncle take care of them since their parents got arrested a year ago. He had been planning on enlisting until his parents got arrested.”

“That sucks,” Raelle said.

“Yeah,” Tally said. “He understood why I chose to serve, said he wanted to do the same thing.”

“Well,” Raelle began, “he still could. I mean, it doesn’t seem like this place will force him to stay. And his siblings, Natalie and Nick right?” She received a nod of affirmation from Tally. “I’m sure they’d be okay with their aunt and uncle here. He could still go.”

“He can’t,” Tally informed her. “He’ll be nineteen before the next Conscription Day. If he were to go now, he’d get arrested for dodging.”

“Right.”

They heard a few light beeps from behind them and they rose to their feet. Raelle stretched and bent in an attempt to pop her back. They made their way to the golf carts. They were using fewer today, not as many people had showed up to head to the top. They were about to leave when Abigail came sprinting into view.

“Wait,” she called, waving down their cart. She climbed in beside Tally and roughly plopped herself down. “Sorry, my shift just finished. There was a fight between Mrs. Stuart and Mrs. Martinez. Mrs. Stuart thinks Mrs. Martinez’ dog ate one of her chickens. It was a whole mess.”

“Was Mrs. Stuart right? Did the dog do it?” Tally asked an amused smile on her face.

“Oh, a hundred percent,” Abigail responded with a scoff. “But I can’t tell her that now can I? I had to listen to both sides of the story, impartially. I have no idea how Jade and the others have done it for so long.”

“But you resolved it right?” Raelle asked.

“No.” Abigail crossed her arms over her chest. “Kinsley showed up out of nowhere and told them both to act like the adults they were and that, ‘if I wanted to listen to children fighting, I’d just go back to school.’ Shut them right up. It was as though nothing had happened. I can’t tell if everyone in this town love that girl or are afraid of her.”

“Who knows.” Raelle shook her head. “It’s probably a little of both. Every time I see her, I feel like she could probably kick my ass.”

“I’d pay to see that.” Abigail laughed when Raelle punched her shoulder.

They talked amiably all the way to the top. Once they got there they found a nice shaded spot and relaxed. Raelle’s head was in Tally’s lap as the other girl played with her hair. Abigail was napping on the grass next to them. It was nice. Their days had been like this a lot recently. Of course it wouldn’t last.

Tally stiffened under Raelle.

“I copy,” Tally said tilting her head to the side as she focused on something that wasn’t there. “Standing by.”

Raelle pushed herself off of her friend and shook Abigail awake. She awoke with a small jot but she didn’t say a word.

Because something was wrong. They weren’t scheduled to talk with Anacostia for three more days. Tally had been right, coming up here every day had been a good idea.

Abigail and Raelle watch Tally sit completely still for a few minutes. Then, “I understand.” She turned to her friends. “I need the two of you to sing the Seed of Vision. I’ll tell you when to stop.”

They nod their understanding as their friend leans herself against a tree. Tally nodded at them. They held each other’s hands as they started to sing. Tally’s form slumped but her eyes remained wide open.

“I’m here,” Tally said. Abigail and Raelle gave each other concerned looks, but they continued singing.

* * *

“I’m here,” Anacostia said. Around her Petra and Isadora were singing the Seed of Reception.

“Do you really think that’ll work on me, Anacostia?” Scylla asked. “I know better now.”

“It’s not Anacostia,” Anacostia said. “It’s Tally Craven. Anacostia contacted me and told me you wanted to talk. This was the fastest way to make that happen.”

“Prove it.” Scylla narrowed her eyes at the woman in front of her. “Prove I’m talking to Tally Craven.”

“I’ve met a dog named Susan who gets motion sickness,” Anacostia said in a rush. Scylla’s eyebrows shot upwards in surprise. She had not been expecting that. This was real. She offered Anacostia a nod. The woman seemed to sigh in relief, though her expression and demeanor remained unchanged. “What did you want to talk to me about?”

“I must admit,” Scylla said, leaning back in her chair, she winced as it pressed against the gashes on her back. “This is a new one. I’m intrigued. I don’t know how you know about that dog. But I’m intrigued.”

“What did you want to talk to me about?” Tally asked again, Anacostia’s voice sounded agitated.

“Fine, I’ll see how this plays out.” Scylla takes a deep breath and releases it in a slow sight. “They’re offering me a deal,” Scylla told her, though her face remained skeptic. “And I need your help.”

“Why?” Tally, as Anacostia, asked.

“I can’t trust them,” Scylla said scathingly.

“And what makes you think you can trust me?” Tally asked.

“If there’s one thing I know about you Tally Craven,” Scylla started sincerely, “it’s that you’re _good_. I admit, _I’m_ not a good person, but I know one when I see one. And I need your help.”

“What are you giving them in your deal?” Tally asked.

“I’m going to help them take down the Spree.” Scylla’s eyes glanced at the women in her cell.

“How do I know I can trust you?” Anacostia’s voice relayed suspicion.

“I know you can’t see me right now, but you can hear me,” Scylla said. “You’re a knower, you don’t have to see to believe. Listen to my words please. If they follow through on their end of the deal, I will help take down the Spree. But I will need your help.”

Anacostia was silent for a long moment before Tally said, “Fine, I’ll help.”

“Then I need you here.” Scylla’s body relaxed. “I won’t do anything until I know I can trust that they’ve followed through. I can’t do that if you’re not here.”

“Okay,” Tally said. “How do I get there without getting caught?”

“Talk to the woman with two arms. She’ll arrange transportation for you.”

“What does that m-”

“Tally,” Scylla cut her off. “I can’t speak freely here; you can figure it out.”

“Okay,” Tally told her, Anacostia’s voice was softer than Scylla had ever heard it. “I don’t know how long it’ll take but we’ll get there as soon as we can.”

“No,” Scylla exclaimed alarmed. “Tally, the Spree still want their prize. It’s safer if it’s just you.”

“You’re a very cryptic person.”

“I know,” Scylla huffed. “The walls have ears. Talk to Anacostia before you leave, she’ll be the one who sneaks you on base when you get here.”

“I understand,” Tally said. She hesitated a moment before speaking again. “And Scylla, they’re okay. They’re doing really good.”

A weight lifted off of Scylla’s chest and she started to cry in relief. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” Tally said. “Goodbye.” The singing stopped and Anacostia’s face cleared. She shook her head.

“Standby Craven,” Anacostia said. She spared Scylla one last look before she followed Petra and Isadora out of the door.

* * *

“Standing by,” Tally said as she sat up straight again. She spared her friends a glance and found them both staring at her in shock. Raelle looked like she was about to talk, but Tally shook her head, and Raelle’s mouth closed with an audible click. Abigail continued to stare.

“I’m listening,” Tally said, she closed her eyes as she tried to memorize everything she was being told. “Yes ma’am. I understand. Next Thursday eleven hundred hours. East main street.”

Just like that it was over again. Raelle and Abigail didn’t even wait a second before they started asking questions.

It was a cacophony of noise as the two girls’ questions rained down on Tally’s ears. It was too much after the whispered information provided by the link. She covered her ears and when they saw this, Raelle and Abigail stopped. Tally waited for her ears to finish adjusting before she said, “I’m leaving for Fort Salem.”

“What?” Raelle and Abigail exclaimed. Tally flinched at their volume again.

“What does this have to do with Scylla?” Abigail asked before Raelle could.

“Apparently, they’re offering her a deal, but she won’t listen to their offer unless a knower she trusts was there,” Tally told them, she rubbed her temples, this was giving her a headache. “I don’t know what happened, but she doesn’t trust Anacostia anymore.”

“But she’s the one who freed her the first time.” Raelle’s brows furrowed in confusion and she started picking at the grass absentmindedly. “Why wouldn’t she trust her now?”

“I don’t know, but from what I sensed, it was really bad.”

“So what time do we leave?” Abigail asked, her face set with determination.

“Not we,” Tally said gently, “me.”

“What?” Abigail asked heatedly.

“Why?” Raelle chimed in.

“Scylla’s end of the deal is helping them take down the Spree,” Tally informed them. “She said she’ll need my help to do it, but that they still want their prize. I’m assuming she meant Raelle. So it’s not safe for Raelle to go and Abigail, you’ll need to stay because you’re better at no contact linking than Raelle is. That way we can stay in contact at all times.”

“Fine,” Abigail grumbled. “But I’m not happy about this.”

“This’ll help clear our names.” Tally grasped their hands. “Then we can go home, we’ll be able to serve the right way. We’ll get to go to war college.”

They hadn’t thought of that. Raelle wasn’t sure what to make of that.

“What else did you talk about,” Abigail asked.

“We only heard your side of the conversation,” Raelle told Tally.

“Just that really.” Tally’s head tilted to the side and her brows furrowed as she thought back. “She didn’t ask, because she was afraid of being overheard, but I could sense her worry for Kinsley and Duke. I don’t know why but she felt terrified for them, so I told her that they were okay. That’s it honestly.”

“If that’s it, we better find you a way out of here,” Raelle said as she rose to her feet. She offered Tally a hand up, which the girl gladly took.

“Speaking of,” Tally began, “Scylla said to talk to the woman with two arms. She said she’d get me transportation.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Abigail said. “Every woman here has two arms except for Ashlyn.”

“That’s it,” Raelle said. “Ashlyn only has one arm, except for when she wears her prosthetic, then she has two arms. It makes sense, she’s in charge of this place, she’d know how to get you out. And she’s a Dodger, she knows how to travel undetected.”

“Kinsley and Duke are going to be happy that we’re busting their sister out of prison,” Abigail said.

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Tally breathed. A smile spread across her face at the thought of the two girls hearing the good news.

After a quick ride down the mountain. The girls were more settled with Tally’s mission. It was dangerous, and none of them liked that she was going alone, but Tally was happy that she was finally going to be doing what she enlisted for. She was going to fight the Spree.

The girls had no trouble locating the Ramshorn cottage. It was the largest in town and it was the closest to the lake. It looked a lot older than the rest of the cabins as well. The lights were already on in the house, even though the sun hadn’t completely set yet. Raelle could see shadows moving about through the window as they approached.

The three of them stood stiffly in front of the door. The looked at each other to see who would knock. After a few seconds, Abigail rolled her eyes and raised her fist to knock.

The door flew open before she could. “Goddess!” She jumped, clutching at her heart. “Would you stop that?”

Duke was giggling up a storm in front of them. She was doubled over clutching her stomach, and Susan was wagging her tail right next to her. Kinsley made eye contact with the girls from behind her sister.

“Sorry,” Kinsley said with a large smile that suggested she wasn’t sorry at all. “She loves doing that. She heard you coming and thought it would be fun.”

“Who’s at the door?” Ashlyn called from somewhere in the cottage.

“It’s Raelle and the gang,” Kinsley called back.

“Well, let them in,” Ashlyn yelled.

Kinsley rolled her eyes and nudged Duke. The little girl pulled the door open even more, stepping out of their way. She offered them a sweeping bow, “M’ladies.”

“You dork,” Kinsley said pinching her sister’s shoulder before taking off down the hall.

“Hey!” Duke gave chase and Susan happily pranced along behind them.

The Bellweather unit were left standing awkwardly at the door.

Ashlyn appeared at the end of the hall, shaking her head. “I have no idea how Scylla dealt with those two for six years. Madness I tell you, madness. Just come on in,” she invited, “close the door behind you please.”

They shuffled inside and Raelle closed the door behind them. They followed Ashlyn to the back of the house. She led them into the kitchen where Duke was chasing her sister around the table. Their laughter echoed of the walls and filled the room around them.

“Susan,” Duke called happily. The dog moved into Kinsley’s path, effectively blocking off her exit. Duke ran up to her sister and started tickling her sides.

“That’s cheating,” Kinsley cried through the laughter. She didn’t even fight the attack.

“I’m blind,” Duke replied. “I’m allowed to cheat.”

Her response made the Bellweather unit chuckle. Ashlyn just shook her head and moved back to the counter where the food she had been preparing was waiting.

“What brings you ladies by,” Ashlyn asked as she resumed her chopping.

“We have news,” Raelle told her. They had agreed on the way down that Raelle would be the one to tell Scylla’s family what was happening. Of the three of them, she knew Scylla the best. At her words, the Kinsley and Duke stop playing and make their way over to the girls.

“What?” Kinsley asked. “What do you have?”

“We’ve found a way to rescue Scylla,” Raelle told them. “She’s agreed to-”

She’s knocked backwards by the force of two crying little girls throwing themselves at her. Duke pressed her face into Raelle’s thigh and Kinsley into her chest. She looked at her friends and Ashlyn in surprise. She hadn’t been expecting that. She rubbed their backs as they calmed down. It took a few minutes for their crying to stop. When it did Kinsley steeped back and wiped at her eyes. Duke stayed where she was with Raelle rubbing her back.

“Sorry,” Kinsley said. “We thought we were never going to see her again.”

“I understand,” Raelle told her. Kinsley’s face crumpled again as she nodded at her words.

“Why don’t we go sit down?” Ashlyn suggested. “I think we need to talk.”

They made their way into the living room of the cottage. Raelle had to admit that it looked really nice. It felt like a home. The second she sat down; Duke crawled into her lap. Kinsley sat down next to Raelle. She reached out and grabbed her little sister’s hand.

“Are you sure we should talk about this in front of them?” Abigail asked as she sat down on the couch, Tally sitting next to her. “There might be somethings you don’t want them to hear.”

“They already know everything,” Ashlyn waved away Abigail’s concerns.

“Really?” Tally asked, her eyes wide in surprise.

“Yes,” Ashlyn said. “Really. Scylla doesn’t believe in keeping secrets from the girls. They know everything.”

“So they know about the Spree?” Abigail asked. Ashlyn nodded her head. “And about the mall thing?”

“Everything,” Ashlyn confirmed. The Bellweather unit exchanged unsure glances. Ashlyn rolled her eyes at them. “I wouldn’t be so quick to judge if I were you, ladies. You don’t know the whole story. We don’t agree with everything that she’s done, but we understand, and we don’t judge her for it here. I’d suggest you adopt the same philosophy whilst you’re in this house.”

The girls nodded.

“Great.” Ashlyn clapped her hands once. “Now, tell me what you’ve got.

“Scylla’s planning on making a deal with the military,” Tally told them. Ashlyn cocked her head to the side at her words. “She’s going to help them take down the Spree if they do as she asks. I don’t know what she’s asked for, but she’s asked for me to help her.”

“Why?” Ashlyn asked.

“She said she didn’t trust the women who offered her the deal,” Tally told her. “She knows I’m a Knower, and she trusts me. If what they are telling her is true and she take’s the deal, they’ll help her escape again. I’ll go with her to ensure she holds up her end of the deal.”

“And you?” Ashlyn asked Raelle and Abigail. Raelle stopped rubbing Duke’s back when the woman addresses her.

“We’ll be staying here,” Abigail answered.

“Why?”

“I’ve been targeted by the Spree,” Raelle told the woman. “It’s not safe for me to go, so Scylla wanted me to stay here.”

“And I’ll be here to give you updates on everything that is happening.” Abigail offered the woman a small smile.

Kinsley rotated on the couch and wrapped her arms around Tally’s neck. “Thank you,” she exhaled into her neck.

Tally returned Kinsley’s hug with a small smile. “Of course.” Kinsley pulled away and returned to her spot on the couch. Tally looked back over at Ashlyn. “Scylla said to ask you about transportation.”

The woman offered her a wicked smile. “You’ve come to the right place my friend.”

The Bellweather unit looked at each other again. All of them looked slightly concerned.

This was going to be interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment, let me know what you think. The feedback really helps!

**Author's Note:**

> Please Comment! Let me know what you think! I hope you liked it. I'm a selfish writer and comments fuel my creativity. It let's me know how I'm doing.


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